a letter to the reader

dear reader,

Or really... anyone who managed to stumble across my workspace. Thank you for taking the time to pause and interact with the ramblings of my inner mind. I started this blog because a class that I'm in has told me that I have to, and while I am fairly resistant to authority and being told what to do - I'm generally a good listener.

Jokes aside, I'm grateful for the push to do this. I often undervalue my own voice, so the push to set that fear aside is appreciated.

My name is Tahnia [they/her]. I'm a Queer human living in rural Northern Alberta who works in advocacy. This wasn't the route that I originally thought I would end up down. If you talked to ten year old Tahnia, they would tell you that you were wrong if you said this is where they'd end up.

They were quiet. Reserved. Scared to speak out.

I can't confidently tell you when that changed, but it did. In the last ten years I have had the blessing of working with youth in the arts. One of the things that became abundantly clear is that they are resilient and so thoughtful of the people around them. They see things in this world in a way that I would have never imagined possible when I was their age.

I had an 11 year old student explain to me the importance of Roe v. Wade several years ago. This same student could also outline an entire diversification plan for the Albertan economy. Five minutes later you would find them crab walking down the hallway to see the way their calf muscles jiggled.

That was magic to me.

My advocacy work started in youth based advocacy. It centered around fighting for equitable opportunities for youth to have space to explore their own voices. In time, it grew. It was about ensuring that they had safe places to access education, to ensure that they knew where they had resources. It grew into learning about Indigenous cultures and the land that I work, live, learn and play on. It grew into understanding my own Queerness in this world.

Eventually, I stopped pretending that I was not worth fighting for.

I started realizing that I didn't see myself in the people around me. I didn't see people like myself in the media, in shows, in stories. I didn't see people like me being figureheads or celebrated by their community. I thought back to little ten year old Tahnia and how much they would have killed to see themselves in their teachers, or perceived authority figures. I realized that if things stayed this way, there would be a million Tahnias who didn't see themselves in this world.

I allowed myself to be present in the work that I'm doing. I gave myself permission to learn, to fuck up and learn from those mistakes and to always seek out more education. I gave myself permission to speak out, to stand up for myself.

The moment that happened, I knew that I had found myself.

It's pretty cool to see how the work that you are passionate about is the thing that holds up a mirror to yourself.

That's the shortened story of why I am here, how I grew and why I want to change this world. I hope you stick with me for a little while. We can learn together.

Talk to you in the chaos!

T