Well, sure. I suppose I am, at least nominally.

[bodlon]

As I've mentioned before, the stats plugin I use with my WordPress install tells me all kinds of remarkable things, like how many unique visitors I've had, what gets clicked, etc.

One of those remarkable things that I get to see is search engine strings. In plainer English a search engine string is the words someone has typed into Google or Yahoo! or some other search engine site and somehow arrived on my digital doorstep.

Some of these are really obvious: my name, something I've written or an anthology my work has been in, etc. Others are more obscure, but I can sort of piece together how some post or other made Google think that I might have something useful to say. Some of them are...well, with the surname Young, you can imagine.

This morning I noticed a new one: "christian young trans."

Now, I don't shy away from my gender identity here on the blog. I'm vocal about my experience as a transgender person and trans issues in general. But it's not really my defining characteristic. It's more like my hair color or my height. It's just a thing that is, which has the unfortunate consequence of also being a thing that is politically charged and difficult. Which, er, is why I'm so vocal. So if someone is looking for my name associated with transness, yeah hi. Most effective search string ever and I'm glad it works.

But, you know, I've also got a name that's almost entirely adjectives. "Young" and "Christian" are words that describe people (which is always sort of fun because I'm less and less young these days and not at all Christian), which kind of adds to the hilarity level all around. In fact, it's entirely likely that someone might have found themselves here looking for a trans youth support group or site, other transgender Christians, etc. Which if that's what someone is looking for, I'm not really the best resource. I'm supportive, but I'm not really your guy.

So in the interests of helping out as much as I can either way.

If you're trying to figure out what my deal is, hi. You can ask me stuff. Here is good, but I also have a Formspring page, which you can use to ask things anonymously. (Obviously unkind or too-personal questions will be handled according to my own discretion.)

For general support about gender identity or sexual orientation, check to see if your community has an LGBTQ resource center or support group of some kind. Where I live, there are a handful of clubs associated with the colleges, a really great center at Mizzou, and The Center Project. We've also got a PFLAG chapter, and PFLAG are fantastic. They support not just LGBTQ people themselves, but their friends and families, and they have chapters all over the place. They can also be a great resource for finding other resources in your area.

If you're a Christian and looking for help with gender identity and sexual orientation issues, I know this can be really hard and scary. Be careful, because there are groups like Exodus International who actively try to draw LGBTQ persons into the fold in order to harm them. Also, depending on your home congregation, things may also be hard. People you like or respect may well say and do things that hurt. (Or, conversely, they may surprise you with a whole hell of a lot of love.) Just be safe, and remember that it's okay to leave a group if you need to.

PFLAG and any community group would be a good resource for finding out about LGBTQ-friendly counselors and congregations. If you're Catholic, Dignity is a pro-LGBTQ group that's existed for long enough that even I know about them. Also, Camp Out was a really interesting documentary that made me aware of The Naming Project, which does summer camps for LGBTQ youth, and they have a fantastic links section.

So yeah. Hope this helps, good luck, and thank you for reading.

This post has been mirrored from Christian A. Young's Dimlight Archive. To see it in its original format, visit dimlightarchive.com