HANGING OUT THE LAUNDRY

In the upper Amazon at its beginning, everyone has a chore.

I was told by a woman working to sweep a floor,

We don’t have welfare; we work more.

We have a rule for all to follow   

No work, no food to swallow.     

It works well for us all.  

We love to eat

We think it’s

Neat.

__________________________

What is Fair?

The news is currently filled with debates and new laws about transgender individuals in sports. Should a man who wants to live like a woman be in the same race with other women? I think it’s too bad that they’re going to settle this argument in court with a new law – a red line you shall not cross– that can sometimes feel unfair to someone.

  I have a way to let transgender women compete with women but not against them. Transgender people should still be able to compete. This is part of their freedom, which we are so proud of in the United States. How do we make it fair to all involved? In most areas there are not enough transgender individuals to compete against themselves in any one area. We need to make an adjustment.

  Using colleges as an example, we could see how one plan would work. In most competitions, the first, second, and third trophies are awarded to the individuals who crossed the finish line in that order. This works well and is fair within the group. The colleges would form a women’s group and a men’s group, but not have enough for the transgender category. Perhaps only one or two transgenders would run in that particular race. Some transgenders would run in the race with the women, others with the men, depending on what they prefer. The women would be competing alongside them, not against them. They would be competing with other transgenders across the division/country. Prizes would be awarded to the women in the race, as normal. The transgender time would be logged into a central location, where the stats for transgender individuals are kept as a separate group from the women. For example, there would be a first, second, and third in the transgender 100m race within the Division, not the individual school.

   It is fair and does not discriminate in any way. A group would need different rules, but the team may allow one transgender for each 8- or 10-members on the team, or a percentage like 5, 10 or 15% of the team. They would be regular team members, and no other accommodation would be needed. We would have to get over the idea that if someone is different from us, it doesn’t mean we are better than them. 

_________________________

I had some bird seeds in my garage 

And didn’t know what to do with it.

I decided to plant it in my garden.

A bird grew up where I planted

The seeds, but now I had nothing

To feed it.