Gentle Alterhumanity
Word count: ~250
Reading time: ~2 minutes

Lately I’ve been too stressed to properly engage with the community. I’ve neglected my discords, my asks, and whatever passes for discourse these days. And while I do feel guilty - I feel like I’ve abandoned my comrades - it has also given me a fresh look at my nonhumanity/fictanthropy.

I don’t believe you’re ever truly done examining your identity. But I’ve reached a point where there isn’t a whole lot more to discover, regarding my otherkinity-as-identity. By that I mean, I still get noemata about my kintypes as separate-from-my-current-self. But I’ve pretty much figured out how they fit into the rest of my self-perception.

In the past few weeks I’ve experienced what it’s like to be nonhuman without a community to constantly keep the flames of my identity burning. Without actively engaging with the community, and without regularly writing my nonhuman experiences down, the way my nonhumanity presents itself to me has changed somewhat.

I rarely shift at the moment, and have reached more of a baseline otherkinity, that just fluctuates a bit in intensity. I suppose some would call that suntherianthropy (sunkinity?), but I don’t really find the word useful.

My whole experience is a lot more mellow than it was when I first joined the community for real, back in 2016. It’s still present, strong, and tangible. But it’s less intense. It’s pepper as a spice now, instead of pepper straight on your tongue.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the way my nonhumanity feels changes once more when (if?) I return to the community full speed. But for now, this gentle therianthropy, otherkinity, and fictionkinity is welcome.