#reclaiming power

[whispersoflullaby]

During the course of few days the most commonly used adjectives for Lu Guang in social media caught my eyes and irritated me to my core. The adjectives are- "selfish", "hypocrite" and "unhealthy" (in the way lu Guang loves Cheng xiaoshi *many are in denial about that too and I don't have the excruciating energy to argue with them*).

Now, let me shed light upon the text book definition of selfish - "one who is chiefly concerned with one's own personal profit or pleasure." (Wikipedia). Okay, so Lu Guang trying to save Cheng Xiaoshi is an act of selfishness? Isn't it basic instinct to protect our beloved? When our house is on fire isn't it human behaviour to look out for our people and trying to save them from the massacre or do we look out for our neighbours and try to look out for them when our own house is burning? When I have 2 dollars in my bank account and the ransom for saving an unknown person is exact 2 dollars, for the humanity and compassion and love for others I will spend that two dollars on that person but I will not take a loan for that right? But for my beloved, for my friends, for those who matter in my life the most I will not think even for a bit to go that extra mile and take loan from the bank and pay the hefty interest for the rest of my life. That's how struggle for existence, struggle to stay relevant is. Darwin's survival of the fittest isn't a very new concept right? It's our basic human instict to look out for our community people, seek out for them. In Hindu mythology, there's a saying - friends and beloveds should be like Krishna and Karna- those who stay by your side in dire need, even when on some level you are wrong, even when the world is against you. And why people are considering that saving people's life , changing timeline and messing up the fundamentals of time theory is just like a kid's play for Lu Guang and he don't have to pay any price for that . A price that can even make and remove his existence from everywhere? Where is Lu Guang's fault that he dared to dream to be with his beloved, the only person he has? In this context I will like to give reference to a line of vortex - "knowing it all am I destined to fall?, Knowing it all, Like once you did for me . " This this the Biblical reference to the story of Adam and Eve. Lu Guang is only able to know, he is not able to change everything. He can only try to change , keeping everything he has on sake, even his life. One thing - if Lu Guang sacrifices himself for everyone, how will he exist - Lu Guang's spirit animal is a cat, he doesn't have nine lives literally.

Next comes the very common trope of blaming Lu Guang as a hypocrite. For the reference I am attaching the definition of hypocrite from Cambridge Dictionary ( I don't think there can be a more authentic source for the definition) - Someone who says they have particular moral beliefs but behaves in way that shows these are not sincere. Okay so are we mixing up the very basic concept of moral beliefs and human instict to love, to care, to save and in general the basic human instict to "struggle for existence" . Even a suicidal person struggles on the threshold point of of their urge to live and their wish to end this life. Has Lu Guang ever claimed that he is that resurrected Chirst figure. In this late capitalist state he is here to save the mankind and punish the sinner. No, right ? So why are we making him a God like figure? And Lu Guang is hypocrite about what? For not letting Cheng Xiaoshi know that he will be going through workplace sexual assault when transmigrated to Emma's body? According to my understanding when someone is transmigrating to another person's body one is subscribing to experience one's lived experience, then with the vengeance for the horrible act they suffered, acting accordingly. When one is transmigrating don't you think letting one know about the experience one will be going through we are nullifying the other person's lived experience? When a person residing in center experiences a marginalized person's life ( in this case her marginalization happens because of her gender and class - both economic and social) it's difficult for the person living in the center fathom the intensity of a incident, everything isn't about textbook definitions. Moreover, did Lu Guang had the chance? Don't we think Lu Guang was helpless in that situation or is being dehumazined to a level that we are hesitant of thinking Lu Guang can have basic emotions? Or are we blaming Lu Guang for not letting Cheng Xiaoshi know about Emma's death? We all know in what condition (both mental and physical) Cheng Xiaoshi was after coming back from transmigrating into Emma's body.

Now, comes the adjective used for Lu Guang - " unhealthy" and we can also consider this as being non-concensual, abusive, obsessive kind of lover or "mate" as people like to call .. or should I say comrade? Anyway, one thing I learnt from this is that when a person is going to meet with an accident - I will first stop the speeding car going to hit the person and then let them sign the contract that will have made beforehand stating that I am allowed to save that person:⁠-⁠).! So that, the person whom I am saving don't get a guilt trip that they are being saved . As in that process I might have hurt myself and that person don't have to live through a life long guilt of being saved. Are we literally so much into the kind of media where we worship the Petrarchan trope of love that taking active action for one's love is being criminalized.

And people are so intrigued about passing value judgement about Lu Guang that he is judged merely being judged into the New Critic's way "good" or "bad"- "Is Lu Guang adding any value to our life?" "Is Lu Guang making you a good human being suitable to serve the big bens of the capitalist society?" - if not, then just tag Lu Guang as a horrible person. In the constant urge of villainizing Lu Guang, we have dehumazined Lu Guang so much that we have forgotten to see him as an individual and visualing him from a human parameter. The only request is to stop demonising him for loving, for dreaming to be with his love, for having a "queer" dream of a happy life...(⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)(⁠◔⁠‿⁠◔⁠)(⁠.⁠ ⁠❛⁠ ⁠ᴗ⁠ ⁠❛⁠.⁠)(⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)⁠❤

[marshbevvie]

tired of men in my life trying to scare me and make me weaker than i am.. so here goes

just as i take back “bevvie” i take back this.

*to the tune of dove cameron boyfriend*

I could be a better clown than him

[qhaqhaprojects]

'Umzimba Yikhaya' (The body is a home)

2020

The title, umzimba yikhaya (“the body is a home”), adds a powerful layer to this piece, deepening its exploration of identity, belonging, and self-containment. Here, the body becomes a vessel for heritage, memory, and identity—a personal “home” that carries culture and history within it, regardless of physical location. The figure’s partial presence within the traditional structure suggests that true belonging may not lie in external places but within oneself. This body-as-home concept emphasizes that identity is an internal space where one can find rootedness, even when external connections feel fragmented.

The cutout and layered imagery speak to the idea that the body, like a home, is a place of both fullness and absence, continually shaped by the experiences and histories it holds. The white space that outlines the figure may symbolize aspects of the self that are still forming, being reclaimed, or have yet to be fully understood. The body, as depicted, becomes a landscape of both presence and mystery—a sanctuary that holds inherited wisdom, resilience, and ongoing self-discovery.

By grounding identity in the body, umzimba yikhaya invites viewers to consider how they inhabit their own sense of self and how the “home” they carry within offers refuge, strength, and continuity amid change. This artwork reminds us that the body is a sacred dwelling, holding within it all that we are, all we have lost, and all we seek to become.

[navigating-after-trauma]

How to (Not?) Reclaim Power

Sometimes, I think about seeking out everyone who wronged me and give them a taste of the hell they put me through. I think about revealing their names. To let the world know how much pieces of trash they all are.

Then again, like Dr. Ramani Durvasula said, it is best to take revenge by living out the happy, healthy life they never allowed and let karma do the rest.

But what is empowering if not taking back power and taking matters into my own hands to dish out karma myself?

[xtrablak674]

Not Withdrawing, but Reclaiming and Reprioritizing

In the last few months I have shelved my Facebook Messenger account after having over a year ago turned off my FB proper, this was followed with my Instagram account also being put away. Just this week I have decided to step away from my Deviant Art account after getting dinged for violations by a snitch on the platform. If my creative insight doesn't fit into the terms of service or community standards, than I need to leave you alone.

A few years ago my Flickr account was deleted with no notice whatsoever. I remember how disrupted my life felt because I was on that platform before it was bought by Yahoo ('05) and was subsequently passed around like a low-priced sex worker. I developed relationships, friends and even met some folks IRL. I had participated in moderating groups, creating them and utilizing all of the tools the platform offered. As I have said in my artist talks, it was the jump-off for my artistic career giving me the confidence to believe that my work could exist in the real world and be purchased, consumed and enjoyed.

Albeit I have never downloaded TikTok myself, the young people in my life send me many links and in some cases videos from the platform. I can relate to the anxiety some of these same young people are feeling about the platform being shutdown or restricted. These digital spaces become places for connection and a way to interact with people offline, and this can be addictive and affirming. But in a lot of ways I still have to wonder the same thing behavioral scientist, economist and sociologist are wondering, at what cost?

Initially the only reason I ever got on anyone's social media was to promote my artwork, but after my foray into the art world, the drying up of employment and the depletion of my funds I let that go, but kept up the pretense for a while, maybe too long. As I approach another turn around the sun I am reevaluating if these spaces are the place for me.

I can recall in the pre-internet 2.0 world, when DSL was king and AOL wasn't such a distant memory, that there wasn't a lot of love for me online. Who I am and how I embody those aspects wasn't ever something that sold easily. This was reflected to me from my brief stint as an escort during my summer off from college, reinforced by the first ad agency that I worked at, where the only time I was ever utilized in an ad was when my face wasn't showing.

I say this to say, I understand I am not everyone's cup of tea. Not that I think my physical appearance or personality are lacking, I think our societies idea of what is beautiful, palatable or interesting are lacking. We are supposed to imbibe of a limited set of flavors never truly contemplating a more complex palette. And I was a persons whose very identities used all the colours in the Crayon box.

I've mentioned before I haven't had intimate relations since '12 and dated since '07 the last platforms I was on were antiquated things like Adam4Adam and match.com, which curiously enough is still around. No one has ever swiped right on me, because I have never been on those apps. Not to date myself, but I can recall when hookups happened on the phone, where you would call a number talk to someone and maybe possibly be chosen, or in a lot of instances be swiped left on.

In some ways I guess it can feel like I am withdrawing from the world especially since I am still not a fan of leaving the house, something that pre-dated the pandemic by nearly a decade. I have just grown weary of unfulfilling friendships, empty acquaintances, and neglectful niblings (using this as a catch-all for the children of my siblings). I have always been a person who wanted more, deeper connections, complex conversation, real intimate relationships but the time for those things have waned completely becoming shadows of things I had in the past and I simply refuse to accept less than the best, even if that means that I am keeping my own company.

Settling, it has never been something I was good at, I'd rather be bad by myself than in a situationship that makes me compromise who I am, or partition my identities to be more acceptable, or accept less than what I deserve. "Maybe I'm just like my mama, she's never satisfied." Why should I accept mediocre when I aspire to greatness?

As I enter the third day of a fast that I didn't even plan, deeper into my quinquagenarian years and I pass around the sun for another rotation or colloquially as I say to the kids, the celebration of my first appearance (a la comic book) I want to move away from the things that aren't serving me, celebrating me, acknowledging me and keeping me close to their heart. If I am not getting this from those around me I will be content to be happy with myself, by myself.

[Photos by Brown Estate]

It's All Temporary

Fuck Your Community Standards

[daydrinking75]

if people are already thinking of me without my shirt on then i might as well make a giant ass painting of it and make millions and everyone horny

[searching4-h0pe]

All voices are allowed to be heard. Every want or need or feeling can be allowed to stake it's claim. And I don't have to immediately choose between conflicting voices. They don't always need to be followed or acted on, they aren't always practical, but they need to be allowed to exist and be considered. To be allowed to exist without shame. Because they are a part of me. And all of me deserves to exist without shame.

[jadeannbyrne]

Jade Ann Byrne's 95 Theses: A Paladin's Declaration of Inner Power

Jade Ann Byrne’s 95 Theses: A Paladin’s Manifesto for Reclaiming Inner Power Unveil the divine spark within and break free from the false idols that hold you back. In this powerful declaration, Jade Ann Byrne, Paladin of the modern age, presents her 95 Theses—a transformative call to action for those ready to awaken their true potential. Discover the undeniable electricity inside, challenge the…

[gpstudios]

Letting Go of Guilt: How to Reclaim Your Power and Embrace a Guilt-Free Life

Guilt can weigh us down, holding us back from living a full and empowered life. Discover how to release this burden, reclaim your personal power, and embrace a guilt-free future in this transformative journey.

Guilt is an emotion we all encounter at some point in our lives. It can stem from actions we regret, words we wish we hadn’t said, or even from situations where we feel responsible for things beyond our control. While guilt can sometimes prompt us to reflect and grow, it often lingers longer than necessary, becoming a burden that weighs us down. Understanding the nature of guilt and learning how…

[mydayswithtarotbystella]

Breaking Free from Spiritual Manipulation: Reclaiming My Space

For far too long, I have been haunted by the spirit and presence of someone who has manipulated, abused, and harmed me in ways that go beyond the physical. I am mentioning this man as John, J.T. or J. In short, because I don´t want to mention his name. Names are sacred and should only be mentioned by full name when the person is worthy of it. This person has invaded my dreams, stolen my energy,…

[yujateaandpi]

Gobbled up the Dandadan anime and manga recently and absolutely adored it all. Not only does it feature the most likable and strongly written female characters I’ve ever seen in a shonen, it discusses extremely pertinent themes about consent and bodily autonomy from a lens of female solidarity while also elevating healthy relationships with kind communicative male characters who respect boundaries. It’s wacky, fun, gorgeous, and super refreshing. 

[forgetful-nerd]

Rise! Mikey and 2012! Raph would be best friends because the moment Rise! Mikey spotted this cutie sitting on 2012! Raph’s shoulder:

He’d be instantly obsessed with his fellow fire turtle

And 2012! Raph would never miss the chance to show off his son.

[trans-axolotl]

also this is the reason why i hate the whole discussion about "oh can we still say hermaphrodite in science discussions" because like. you all do not fucking understand the weight of the word. what it feels like when someone calls you a hermaphrodite when you are fearing for your fucking life. the amount of times i had to call myself a hermaphrodite because no one fucking knew what intersex meant but i needed to find a way to disclose that to clients so i didn't end up assaulted again when they were surprised. you don't know how much i fucking hated myself for that and what that was fucking like to experience at 16. like. that is what that word means to me! that's what i think of when i hear it! lots of other intersex people have their own stories, their own ways this slur was weaponized against us and written down in our medical records and a million fucking things. so i really don't want to hear from dyadic people who have never had this slur used against them about how hard it is to find an alternative word and how they just really really need to be able to still say it because of all the scientific discussions that are happening all the time or whatever. literally fuck off i don't care

[beevean]

New art of Trevor in Dead By Daylight! And he looks absolutely gorgeous in this comic book style 💖

kinda funny that they drew him as he realizes he's fucked lmao

[therealjasonx]

Absolutely no one:

Me:

[doomsdaydicecascader]