Diverse Falling Back in Love with Being Human

A national bestseller in Canada, hailed by The New York Times as an “intimate expression of self-acceptance and forgiveness, tenderly written to fellow trans women and others.” “Required reading.”—Glennon Doyle, #1 bestselling author of Untamed A THEM AND AUTOSTRADDLE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR FINALIST FOR THE PAT LOWTHER MEMORIAL AWARD What happens when we imagine loving the people—and the parts of ourselves—that we do not believe are worthy of love? Kai Cheng Thom grew up a Chinese Canadian transgender girl in a hostile world. As an activist, psychotherapist, conflict mediator, and spiritual healer, she’s always pursued the same deeply personal mission: to embrace the revolutionary belief that every human being, no matter how hateful or horrible, is intrinsically sacred. But then Kai Cheng found herself in a crisis of faith, overwhelmed by the viciousness with which people treated one another, and barely clinging to the values and ideals she’d built her life around: justice, hope, love, and healing. Rather than succumb to despair and cynicism, she gathered all her rage and grief and took one last leap of faith: she wrote. Whether prayers or spells or poems—and whether there’s a difference—she wrote to affirm the outcasts and runaways she calls her kin. She wrote to flawed but nonetheless lovable men, to people with good intentions who harm their own, to racists and transphobes seemingly beyond saving. What emerged was a blueprint for falling back in love with being human.

A national bestseller in Canada, hailed by The New York Times as an “intimate expression of self-acceptance and forgiveness, tenderly written to fellow trans women and others.” “Required reading.”—Glennon Doyle, #1 bestselling author of Untamed A THEM AND AUTOSTRADDLE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • FINALIST FOR THE PAT LOWTHER MEMORIAL AWARD What happens when we imagine loving the people—and the parts of ourselves—that we do not believe are worthy of love? Kai Cheng Thom grew up a Chinese Canadian transgender girl in a hostile world. As an activist, psychotherapist, conflict mediator, and spiritual healer, she’s always pursued the same deeply personal mission: to embrace the revolutionary belief that every human being, no matter how hateful or horrible, is intrinsically sacred. But then Kai Cheng found herself in a crisis of faith, overwhelmed by the viciousness with which people treated one another, and barely clinging to the values and ideals she’d built her life around: justice, hope, love, and healing. Rather than succumb to despair and cynicism, she gathered all her rage and grief and took one last leap of faith: she wrote. Whether prayers or spells or poems—and whether there’s a difference—she wrote to affirm the outcasts and runaways she calls her kin. She wrote to flawed but nonetheless lovable men, to people with good intentions who harm their own, to racists and transphobes seemingly beyond saving. What emerged was a blueprint for falling back in love with being human.

Was passiert, wenn wir uns vorstellen, die Menschen – und die Teile von uns selbst – zu lieben, von denen wir glauben, dass sie keine Liebe verdienen? Eine transformative Sammlung intimer und lyrischer Liebesbriefe, die einen Weg zu Mitgefühl, Vergebung und Selbstakzeptanz bietet. New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice - "Pflichtlektüre." - Glennon Doyle. Kai Cheng Thom wuchs als chinesisch-kanadisches transgender Mädchen in einer feindlichen Welt auf. Als Aktivistin, Psychotherapeutin, Konfliktmediatorin und spirituelle Heilerin verfolgte sie stets die gleiche zutiefst persönliche Mission: den revolutionären Glauben zu umarmen, dass jeder Mensch, egal wie hasserfüllt oder schrecklich, intrinsisch heilig ist. Doch dann fand sich Kai Cheng in einer Glaubenskrise wieder, überwältigt von der Bösartigkeit, mit der Menschen einander behandelten, und klammerte sich kaum noch an die Werte und Ideale, um die sie ihr Leben aufgebaut hatte: Gerechtigkeit, Hoffnung, Liebe und Heilung. Anstatt der Verzweiflung und dem Zynismus nachzugeben, sammelte sie all ihren Zorn und ihre Trauer und wagte einen letzten Glaubenssprung: sie schrieb. Ob Gebete, Zaubersprüche oder Gedichte – und ob es einen Unterschied gibt – sie schrieb, um die Ausgestossenen und Ausreisser zu bekräftigen, die sie ihre Familie nennt. Sie schrieb an fehlerhafte, aber dennoch liebenswerte Männer, an Menschen mit guten Absichten, die ihren eigenen schaden, an Rassisten und Transphobe, die scheinbar nicht zu retten sind. Was entstand, war ein Plan, um sich wieder in das Menschsein zu verlieben.