THERE are some nights so dark and tenebrous that they can chill us to our very cores. During nights like these, we have learnt to seek the brightness of stars and the moon to comfort us. The silver light they cast upon us can give us hope. Light appearing in the darkness, we have learnt, is a universal sign of hope. Yet, the deep sea, which mirrors the darkness of the night sky, hosts many creatures that use light to attract their prey. Creatures such as the anglerfish thrive in the darkness, using light as a lure to capture prey. Unfortunately, in the deep ocean, a light appearing in the darkness is anything but a sign of hope.

In this manner, the universe has proven itself to be the home of a plethora of anomalies and paradoxes. Where light in one part of the universe symbolises hope, in another part, it precedes predation. Human beings have learnt not only to accept the strangeness and uniqueness of different facets of the universe but have also developed various sciences and philosophies to satisfy their curiosity and wonder about them.

The nature of man is just as mysterious and indecipherable as the universe itself. Our bodies and minds are capable of feats we are yet to understand. Nevertheless, we are almost always more willing to accept the strangeness of the universe than the uniqueness of a human being. We are often ready to define normalcy and create societal standards for human beings when human beings are, in fact, as indefinable as the universe. Attempting to force everyone to fit into a box is quite similar to the task of governing the universe.

Recently, I discovered the story of Pidgeon Pagonis. Pidgeon was born with a condition called Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome, which means that although they are genetically male, they have the physical features of both males and females. As a result of their condition, they faced multiple obstacles in their life. Because Pidgeon did not fit into the box society had prepared for them, they were made to undergo multiple surgeries to force them to appear female without truly understanding what was happening to them.

Pidgeon was simply named ‘Jennifer’ and raised as a girl without being informed about their condition or being made aware that they were genetically male.
Pidgeon’s story is that of a child whose body was altered and, in some ways, mutilated without complete informed consent, solely to make them more acceptable to societal norms. Today, Pidgeon Pagonis is an avid intersex activist who shares their story in the hopes of raising awareness about the condition and encouraging the world to be more accepting of intersex people.

We are all unique. We learn this fact as soon as we are capable of communicating with each other. Even those who do not experience medical conditions that make them different can have qualities that set them apart from the rest of the world. As members of a generation that will be responsible for the future world, we must make it our responsibility to create a home where people are not marginalised or mutilated because of their differences. We must create a world where, when people like Pidgeon are born, they are given a chance to create their own identity and space rather than having their identity decided for them.

No box can contain the universe. Similarly, there are no rules or standards that can encompass all human beings without erasing parts of their identities. In a perfect world, people are allowed to express themselves without having to justify their identity to a society unwilling to listen to them. However, because our world is not perfect, there is always something we can do to make it more welcoming and safe for all kinds of people.
If humankind has achieved so much despite the arbitrary lines and rules forced upon it, imagine what we could accomplish in a world without such limitations.