We want to know and understand how you observe, perceive, think, and engage with yourself and the world around you. Respond to all parts of the following prompt accordingly. Reflect on a belief or opinion held by you, which you questioned and examined. What initiated your questioning? Describe the intellectual process you undertook to examine this belief or opinion.Explain the results of your reflection and the changes you saw in your belief or opinion.

My mother’s words stumbled through her mouth when she heard me. I felt the comfort in her eyes, yet she turned red. For the last seventeen years, I was taught about the two genders (the third one to be ignored or shushed usually). I wasn’t sure if she was feeling betrayed or proud of me. Up until this moment, my relationship with my mother was friendly. After this moment, she became my mentor. My story could be the same as the teens of my age. We do not fit in, and we don’t want to. I couldn’t resonate with the previous generation in a lot of ways. My generation is stuck between the two worlds. As a child, of course, I chose the world I was living in. All of us are inundated with the gender messages from the time we are born, yet only a few opportunities are given to understand the fundamentally important aspects. The other day, I was observing the boy in my class who applied nail paint on his hands, admired them, but rubbed it off when it was time to go home. He was polite; his approach towards me and others was humble. He was the combination of a scared kid on the first day of school and a curious one. I could perceive that from far off. His situation made me ponder if gender was a biological construct or social. I began to question if as a society we are contributing negatively towards his mental health. Are we still stuck on stereotyping? Are men supposed to be physically violent and be ‘manly’? I used social media to research and found out how we are not ready to unleash the truth. The truth that we are living in a society, which is not just black and white. We have a rainbow to appreciate. It was time I announced to myself the need for a dialogue with a close person. The interaction on Sunday evening with my mother was comforting. She understood the questions I had and answered all of them. It was funny because she feared if I was just observing or going through the same. I made sure I wanted to contribute to the mental health of people who are struggling with themselves and saw relief in her eyes. Scholars are advocating the biological reasoning behind people exploring themselves as more than a man or a woman, so why are we being critical about it? I regret staying silent in the class but I don’t do it anymore. I figured out that at the very least, it has to begin with the people around me. I realized how we were mentally breaking down the “other genders” as a society but I am happy that I have reflected upon it.