Just polite

“Never make the mistake of believing forbearance equates to acceptance, or that all positions are equally valid.”

[Yes, this is from Thrawn' s journal]

~

As women, we are often expected to be soft-spoken.

Patient. Tolerant. Calm.

Always smiling.

And we are, right?

So people assume.

Assume we're weak.

Assume we're assertive.

Assume we're blindly accepting every shit they throw at us.

They mansplain us just because we don't expose their ignorance.

They think they can overpower us just because we're not screaming louder.

In truth, we're just polite.

I don't know if we will ever break the chains that restrain us to the role that society assigned to us. To the image that the world wants that we reflect.

But when you ask me why I love Thrawn so dearly, consider adding this to the pile of neurodivergence, overall weirdness, and tireless dedication that already allows me to see myself in him.

He is constantly misunderstood.

Mistreated.

Disparaged.

Underestimated.

And nevertheless, this doesn't make his firm judgment less sharp or his detractors' faults less painfully tangible.

The fact that he hides the denigrator's idiocy under a "perhaps" does not permit anyone to gaslight THE reality.

[I know. It seems that the photos are disconnected from the caption. But my week with 'Raw'n, hiking in the woods -and eating delicious food- gave me time for introspection. Also, sorry for the double image, which I normally tend to avoid. For once, I really could not choose. He looked *so relaxed* in both]

[And, yes, I am aware that he is an action figure. And, yet]