On the Margins

I've been thinking about being on the margins a lot lately. Honestly, I think about it a lot because my current path--one that has me in yoga studios, health food stores, on websites researching companies that focus on health & wellness, etc.--is one where most of the people I'm interacting with are women, but more often than not are white. So I've been thinking about how while I'm beginning to work in more female-dominated spaces, I'm still feel as though I'm on the margins at times. I'm still an odd person out. I've been thinking a lot about the importance of having access to groups, organizations, fellow students/yoginis, etc. that, well, look like me and have possibly had similar experiences. I'm been thinking about the importance of having a diversity of people, experiences on any staff/in any group/etc., but especially one that is aimed health and wellness.

There are other ways I feel like I've been on the margins as of late...and there are some which make it clear that I am not as far out on the margins as I thought.

Anyway, I don't really have a point except that the idea of what it means to be marginalized has been on my mind (probably also because of What Tami Said's series). I was reading this article by Teju Cole today and this caught my eye:

"Marginalized voices in America have fewer and fewer avenues to speak plainly about what they suffer; the effect of this enforced civility is that those voices are falsified or blocked entirely from the discourse."

This idea isn't new...but it does make me want to pick up some bell hooks and remind myself of the importance of sharing my experience, my voice in everything I do.

Anyway, that is what came to mind today. No real point. Just some thoughts.

Cheerio (don't know why I felt compelled to end that way...).