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“The poems we write are our own scriptures.” I have no idea if I’m quoting Irish poet/theologian Pádraig Ó Tuama accurately; he has this awful habit of dropping these pearls of wisdom in the middle of casual conversation, when you don’t have a pen handy to jot them down! Still, I think I’ve captured the gist of what he said to me following the “Poems from the Edges” event we hosted together in Vancouver this past Sunday night. photo by Sonya Taylor The event drew a capacity c

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash This is the second post in a 2-part series featuring the voices of a diverse sub-group of folks connected with Generous Space. Some are gay, some trans, some queer, bi, or pan, but they share one thing in common: they tend to be mistaken as straight and cisgender at least partly because of the people they’re married to. You can find Part 1 here. (For brevity, we’ve condensed responses and/or chosen a representative selection from among t

Their relationships are sometimes referred to as “straight-passing” or “straight-presenting,” though these terms can seem to wrongly imply that they’re trying to slip under the radar, when in fact, they’re not. Their statements below reveal that the assumptions made about them afford them a complex mix of privilege and erasure. Part 1 of this interview series is below… and you can find a link to Part 2 at the bottom of this post. (For brevity, we’ve condensed responses and/or

White-crowned sparrow. I’ve been interested in birds since before I knew I was gay. I’m that girl who lugs around binoculars on walks and stops in her tracks when she hears the flutter of wings. I’ve spent hours learning the particularities of bird songs, brow lines and beak length. You can love birds in general, but when you learn how to identify a particular species – when you learn what makes it unique – you can love that species more… well… specifically. And then when you

On the first Wednesday of the month, we publish blog posts written by members of our Generous Space Community. This piece was written by SJ Speer, who lives in Ottawa and is a regular Ontario GS Retreat participant. ——————————– It is estimated that there are only 200 members of the unicorn species left on earth. They are considered endangered and most have made their home in the wilderness of Scandinavian countries. Thick foliage provides excellent coverage from humans so th

On the first Wednesday of the month, we publish blog posts written by members of our Generous Space Community. This creative writing piece was written by Archie Zhang, who (until a recent move to Montreal) was a member of our St. Catharines Generous Space Group. ***content warning: brief reference to rape and drugs*** When they ask you a question, you should know the answer. It’s a simple question. Just tell them what they want to hear. Tell you what you want to hear. What d

“Pride” was the conversation topic at our last Vancouver Generous Space meeting. We all shared our memories and associations with Pride parades, festivals and events, and while there were some common threads, it struck me how differently we experienced Pride, and I continued to ponder this as I read other Pride reflections online from community members across Canada. Some of us remember hiding in the corners and at the edges of Pride events, worried about being “outed” or see

On the first Wednesday of the month, we publish blog posts written by members of our Generous Space Community. This piece is by Kat Scarlett, a member of the St. Catharines, ON Generous Space Group. This year was my first year attending the Ontario Generous Space Retreat. It was a divine experience to say the least. I participated in worship, experienced tremendously well executed workshops, and made beautiful friendships. After the weekend I received a message from one of t

On the first Wednesday of the month, we publish blog posts written by members of our Generous Space Community. This piece is by Vivian Gietz, a member of our Vancouver Generous Space Group. “She is clothed in strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.” – Proverbs 31:25 photo credit: Noel C. Hankamer Mary in the Grotto via photopin (license) The Bible verse above has meant a lot to me since I was a young preteen girl on my way to becoming a “biblical” wo