"I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept." — Angela Davis
"I am nonbinary and I feel that my gender dysphoria may be part of why I am sex-averse. I feel that there is a pro in that being asexual means that I am not distressed by any sex-aversion I experience due to my gender dysphoria." — Em Z., via Sarah Costello and Kayla Kaszyca Sounds Fake but Okay
"A lot of my ace identity is inherently a part of my trans identity. Being sex-indifferent or sex-repulsed is fueled by my lack of sexual attraction and my disconnection from my body. One example is that my aversion to wearing a bikini stems from not wanting people to be sexually attracted to me, but also that it accentuates the parts of my body that I am most uncomfortable with and what I see as counter to how I view myself." — Kara T., via Sarah Costello and Kayla Kaszyca Sounds Fake but Okay
"I am nonbinary/genderqueer and I feel like my gender is very tied with my ace identity. I think it took me such a long time to figure out my gender because I'm ace. I thought that I was uncomfortable looking like a girl because of how sexualized AFAB bodies are by general society." — Mattea, via Sarah Costello and Kayla Kaszyca Sounds Fake but Okay
"As breasts are heavily sexualized in every form of media, I was never comfortable with my own. Even crossing my arms didn't feel right because I preferred to simply forget that they existed." — Finch, via Sarah Costello and Kayla Kaszyca Sounds Fake but Okay
"Often, aromantic-spectrum women will find themselves being compelled to reject "traditional" womanhood not because they have anything against it in particular, but because they so closely associate femininity with dating and romance. In these cases, it's not necessarily about a questioning of gender at all (although that can certainly be another layer of it), but about wanting to reject the stereotypes that surround gender." — Sarah Costello and Kayla Kaszyca Sounds Fake but Okay
"Some aspecs also find themselves wanting to distance themselves from the parts of their gender or presentation that are sexualizing—or parts of their bodies that are not sexual by nature but often sexualized within the broader culture." — Sarah Costello and Kayla Kaszyca Sounds Fake but Okay
"When you talk about rules, you can sound like a fuddy-duddy, but Rules are actually very creative. They are not just for rule-followers. In fact, often as soon as I make a Rule, I realize I will eventually have to—will want to— break it. It’s only a matter of time. Rules are the structure that enable us to go a little wild on a regular basis. Preferably every day." — Katie Arnold The Rules, Work in Process
"Resilience doesn't come from comfort. And so I'm not wishing you a life free of discomfort. I'm wishing you a life where you can handle the discomforts that are inevitably going to come. And I think about that's what my journey in the mountains so much has taught me is not how to prevent all of the things that don't feel good, but how to lean into the ones that are there to teach us." — Melissa Arnot Reid Outside Podcast, "Climbing Everest is Easy Compared to Surviving an Abusive Parent"
"[Doubt is part of my process.] We’re conditioned to see doubt as a sign of insecurity and weakness. I wanted to be one of those people who roll through challenges without a second thought. But doubt is natural, and when we learn to stop resisting it, it becomes a potent source of strength. It doesn’t hinder our creativity. It fuels it. Doubt means we’re asking questions, which means we’re alive and awake, paying attention, willing to do things without a guaranteed outcome, to stretch beyond our edge, and grow in unknown ways." — Katie Arnold What the HELL Was I Thinking?, Work in Process
"I don't like fear. I want to win against it. It keeps me alert, but I won't obey it." — Jan Farrell, speed skier Hard Pack Ski Magazine, Issue 5, "The Speed Racers"
"Due to the patriarchal understanding of man as norm and woman as other, the wider world often struggles to comprehend anyone drawing on femininities who is not regarded as a woman. Such expression is often heavily policed. Whereas anyone drawing on masculinities is understandable: of course people would want to be masculine. Because masculinity is regarded as superior to femininity, anything associated with femininity on a man is highly visible, whereas masculinity on women is often unremarked." — Meg-John Barker Gender: A Graphic Guide
"'Your body is ready. Your body knows what do. Trust that and get out of your own way.'" — Natalie via Katie Arnold Brief Flashings in the Phenomenal World
"I’d had this idea that I could push myself physically through anything if I was tough and smart and rugged, and that the push would show me something about myself and my place on the river. That being able to do things alone was a sign of strength, not fear. I’d thought I could conquer the landscape and fully understand the problem of water use. But none of that is true. The tough part is connection, looking across lines and knowing when to push the lever on what you think is right." — Heather Hansman Downriver: Into the Future of Water in the West
"In this new social media era, the portrayal of women in the backcountry has taken a turn for the fabricated. Instagram users have likely seen the emerging trend of imagery of perfectly coifed women in fashion outdoor wear staring out at beautiful landscapes. These hyper-curated photos saturate Instagram feeds, and this phenomenon is beginning to have a hand in shaping the portrayal of women in outdoor adventure. The rise of this trend has shifted the focus to the aesthetics of the shot rather than the endeavor itself, let alone the skills required for it. One of the big questions centers on the message this category of outdoor portrayals sends to women about what the focus of backcountry adventures 'should' be. In this age of the social media-ization of adventure lifestyles, the line is more blurred than ever about what’s realistic and what’s not." — Guest Editor Misadventures Magazine, "The Reality of Women's Sports According to Instagram"
"What we see often has more to do with what we have seen in the past or what we hope or expect to see than it does with what is staring us in the face." — Jill Fredston Snowstruck: In the Grip of Avalanches
"The body doesn’t know miles, it knows stress. If an athlete does the same types of miles as a gold medalist, there’s a good chance the stress could turn their body and spirit into a pile of smoldering rubble." — David Roche via Brendan Leonard Outside Online, "17 Training Myths, Addressed by a Running Coach"
"I think that the wilderness can be a great teacher and that it has much in common with feminist ideas. And by feminism I mean getting in touch with your own values, intelligence, resourcefulness, physical capacities, and general ability to live a rich and satisfying life of your own, not only with, but also apart from, friends and loved ones. There is nothing like severing connections to outside resources—both mechanical and human—to show a person how much she or he can really do. Since women have traditionally been taught that they cannot handle tough situations, the confidence gained on wilderness outings can be particularly valuable for them. I believe that even one weekend backpacking, even in not very difficult surroundings, can have a tremendous and lasting effect on the spirit which will carry over into all aspects of life." — Maggie Nichols via Anne LaBastille Women and Wilderness
"Watching people doubt themselves, in my experience it’s 100% always women. [On one trip] the group naturally split in half. There were some taller folks (all men) in the front, and they were all very fast walkers, very competitive with each other. And in the back it was mostly women, and many of them just happened to be shorter women. One of the women came up to me and said ‘You know, I just don’t know if backpacking is for me. Look how slow I am.’ And I said ‘You’re not slow at all. You’re walking a pace that’s correct for you. You’re doing what your body wants to do. Not thinking about your pace, are you enjoying being out here? Do you like the feeling of your body moving in this space? Don’t compare yourself to the other half of the group up there that’s taller, faster, more competitive. What are you experiencing right now?'" — Charlotte Austin or Shawnté Salabert She Explores, Episode 56, "An (Adventure) Book Club For The 21st Century"
"We do not have to be fearless, we do not have to be perfect. ... Be proud of ourselves, be proud of other women." — Grace Pezzella She Explores, "Sweat and Solidarity: Taking Up Space in the Outdoors"
