Category: Memoirs
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Traveling in Norway for the First Time
During the last few months, I didn’t get out much except for short walks around the neighbourhood. Work was intense, and the weather was just too grey and wet for me to want to go on big excursions. However, as soon as spring kicked off here and the days got longer, warmer, drier, and sunnier,…
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Home
Home. After not having had a home base for almost 2 years, I cannot express well enough how grateful I am to have found a place in June 2021 to which I can return to happily, and relax in, every single day. Many good friends offered me shelter along the way when I was homeless,…
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Featured in Podcast ‘Mis Coming Out’
For all Swiss-German and German speakers out there, here a little something to listen to on a relaxed Sunday afternoon: Marco Schaettin recently interviewed me for his fabulous podcast ‘Mis Coming Out’ (my coming out) and I told him about my life story… ☺️ Click here to get to the podcast episode. Further information on…
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And Then All Changed Again
Where do I even start… well… as you know I was looking for a job and an apartment here in Montpellier. I was even looking with a friend. She has a French passport but is not registered in France at the moment. I have an EU passport. And we wanted to find something affordable together,…
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My Book Paralian is Still Available as eBook – Only Few Print Copies Left
It’s been a long long time since I have posted about Paralian. With Covid, and things that happened in the year before Covid, I have been so absorbed, and left to fend for my survival, I could not really (and still can’t) keep up-to-date with all social media channels. I also realize, I want to…
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Dad
Can I just say how grateful I am for my dad? I mean, I am thinking daily, “Damn, I’m stuck here in Germany in this small apartment without any privacy, camping on the couch in the middle of the room.” True. There are no doors to close, and it’s a small one-bedroom apartment. Nowhere to…
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Enveloped
Dreaming of my days traveling and exploring the oceans. Like here in Palau, getting ready to submerge for a night dive with one of my best friends. Underwater, you are profoundly yourself. You rely on your skills, on the integrity of your mind. There are no doubts. There is only peace and focus. Your buddy…
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Boo, Lara, and Bocelli
Thinking of this little family today. I found them in a pet store in Macau, in 2010. They had just been rescued from the street. A cat with three kittens. All of them were horribly sick. They had any infection you could think of… cat flu, ear infections, eye infections, ringworm, etc. One of the…
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That Immortal Spark
We can only ever find happiness in the moment, can’t we. Nothing ever lasts. All happiness we feel we have attained can be taken away in an instant, at any time, by circumstances, or even by the people we love and have learned to trust with all our heart… Unless we have found that immortal…
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I Know Nothing
For me, personally, the most amazing thing about my memoir Paralian is that through writing it, I have come to understand better than ever that I know nothing. Writing Paralian helped me understand my past in ways I had never been capable of understanding it before. Seeing the bigger picture helped connect some of the…
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Review for Paralian
Hello 😊 Shout-out to all of you, who have read my book ‘Paralian’. If you haven’t done so already, can you be so kind and write a little review for it? Even if it’s just one word? Like a thought shared with buddies around a camp fire, books live on and grow through word-of-mouth. If…
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Cultural Deer
In 2013, I was able to spend a couple months at the Banff Centre in Alberta, Canada. I’ll never forget my time there. On my daily walk up the mountain from home to the theatre, the cold, fresh air did not only clear my lungs but also my mind. Each time I stepped outside through…
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First Presentation in Hong Kong
A couple of weeks ago, I was invited by UBS Hong Kong to give a presentation about my life journey. It was my first ever speaking engagement in Hong Kong. The audience was wonderful. Curious, openminded, and not shy to bombard me with questions after the talk. Standing in the conference room on the 56th…
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Home By The Sea
It’s always been my dream to live right next to the deep blue sea. There is something healing about gazing at the water’s surface, and something exciting about hearing the waves break when they arrive at the beach after their long journey across the sea… Currently at least part of my dream has come true.…
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Immersed in the Sea
This picture was taken in 2005, right after I arrived in the Maldives. I stayed and worked there for four years. When I was ready for new adventures, I left… I am grateful for all experiences I’ve had since. However, to this day, I treasure every minute I spent in the Indian Ocean as a…
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Back in Pirate Paradise
Again, it’s been a busy month. In true Macau fashion, wonderful and exasperating things happened all at the same time. Through unbelievable luck and the kindness of my real estate agent, I was able to get the apartment back I had rented here until 2013. However, it took a few weeks and several hurdles to…
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Here Is Where It All Began
The other week, I went back to our old house on Lamma Island in Hong Kong. Here is where it all began. This was our garden… and behind those windows on the ground floor was our orange-coloured living room… featuring a small table on which I wrote Paralian. One of the happiest years of my…
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Thin Mattress With a View
Time has been racing like a bullet train this month. Dissolving the rest of our household… cancelling all kinds of things like cable, phone, etc. etc. etc. … and multiple breakfasts, brunches, lunches, and dinners with friends and colleagues to catch up one more time before the big move. Now, I am sitting in front…
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Looking Forward to ‘Sticks & Stones’
On June 2nd, if you are in Berlin, come to the Sticks & Stones career fair. I’ll be giving a presentation about my life and about what being transgender means to me. In short, I don’t believe in labels. We are all the sum of our experiences. I don’t ‘identify’ as anything. I simply am.…
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Blast from the Past
Ahhh, this was 2007. I just received this picture a few days ago from my good friend Valerie, whose birthday we were celebrating that day. What a wonderful blast from the past. We all lived together on Kuredu Island in the Maldives, spending most of our time in the Indian Ocean either guiding or teaching…
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Liam on Aeschbacher
Super kind of the Aeschbacher team to already give us stills to help promote the show. Love it and will treasure these memories to keep. Recording this show in Labor Bar in Zurich last Wednesday was a beautiful life experience in every respect! Sooo… for all of you who want to watch it, don’t forget…
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Liam Klenk on Aeschbacher, Apr 15th 2018
Here is a bit of exciting news: I’ve been invited to the ‘Aeschbacher’ talk show on Swiss TV! For all of you who want to watch the show, tune in on SRF 1 at 22:10 on Sunday, the 15th of April, 2018. The show will be in Swiss German, but hey, it might be worth…
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Into The Unknown
Change is life. And, for me, the thought of heading into the unknown is invigorating. I am ready to dive in once more, leave this safe harbor, to simply trust and see where life will lead me. While selling and giving away our belongings, I am amazed yet again by how little I truly need…
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A Moment With…
Big thanks to Theatre Art Life for featuring me in their “A Moment With” series. How did I start my career? What was the best role/job/gig I have done and why? What advice would I give my 18-year old self? … and many other interesting questions. Read all about it here …
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No Stereotypical Male
“I myself had fallen prey to stereotype some years earlier by adopting a swagger and hiding my curves beneath voluminous sweaters. Now, talking with other transgender people, I learned more about who I had become since then. I had no intention of becoming a stereotypical male. Rather, why not become my own species? I was…
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Friendship
Today I am thinking of my close friends, my family. This was Christmas 2006 with my best buddy (I’ve changed his name in my memoir to protect his privacy) and an entire team of unforgettable people on Kuredu Island in the Maldives. Every day, I am fully aware how lucky I was – and still…
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No Limits
25 years ago, when I had my gender reassignment surgeries, I vowed to never let this important decision of aligning my soul with my body hamper or limit me in any way. I was going to continue going after my dreams. And I wouldn’t take no for an answer. Part of this meant to be…
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Two More Awards for Paralian
Today, it was announced that Paralian won not just one, but two more book awards. This makes five altogether! Over the moon doesn’t even begin to cover how delighted I felt when I saw the email this morning. Over the galaxies was more like it (and this after I had almost deleted said email, thinking…
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The Perfect Moment
The perfect moment. Sunshine. A group of delighted scuba divers whom I had guided throughout the morning. Jackfish. Chilli Sauce. Sand as soft a velvet. Palm Trees. A blazing azure sky and turquoise sea all around us. I enjoyed myself. Enjoyed to guide, coach, and drink in our surroundings with all my senses. It didn’t…
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When I Found Home
When I found home… “Our relationship had grown like a table coral – and still did. Tree-like, it fanned out, each tiny branch connecting to others to build a magnificent structure – tough and brittle at the same time. Both of us knew how easily such a delicate formation could break. For the first time,…
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Happy 7th Anniversary to The House of Dancing Water
Today’s post is dedicated to the entire cast and crew – past and present – of The House of Dancing Water in Macau. The show is celebrating its 7th Anniversary. On the 16th of September 2010, we introduced our creation to the world. An island of magic, fairy tales, water, and light. The show is…
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What Would an Ocean Be…
“What would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark? It would be like sleep without dreams.” by Werner Herzog is the quote I chose for the beginning of Paralian. Because this is life. No matter what our backgrounds. There is no sleep without dreams. No growth without challenge. No clarity without ambivalence.…
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I Hope, Deep Down You Knew
Uniting my body with my soul meant breaking the heart of the one person who had always been there for me – my oma (grandma). As the hormones took an ever-firmer hold, I tried explaining to her who I was. Unfortunately, she was becoming progressively more senile. Oma sadly asked for me. Countless times, she…
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A Global Existence
Stepping way out of my comfort zone (geographically as well as mentally) for the first time when I was 18 years old was one of the best things I ever did… It was the beginning of a nomadic life, a global existence, an openness towards things and people unknown, that I wouldn’t trade in for…
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Surfer’s Nipples
“In the past, I had often been stared at and asked about the sizeable scars on my chest. At The House of Dancing Water, no one asked. My fellow divers seemed curious, but no one ever approached me. As for our performers, I knew they had seen so many scars in their lives, they had…
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Summer Reading
‘What would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark? It would be like sleep without dreams.’ Werner Herzog
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Discovering the Ocean
“During my early years, we would go to the North Sea every summer for a long family holiday. I was enchanted from the first moment I laid eyes on the dark blue endlessness. My senses were alert and I felt intensely alive. Nowhere else had I felt so invigorated. Every cell of my small body…
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Hello Mr. Kleng
Bali has always been one of my favorite destinations. Especially Lembongan took my heart by storm when I first visited in 2007 and it has enchanted me ever since. Last month, I was on my way there again for my 5th visit. After landing in Denpasar, my wife and I, Mr. and Mrs. Klenk, together…
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Shuffle Those Cards and Start a New Game
The other week, when giving a presentation about my life journey, someone asked, “Why did you go and work in, for example, muslim countries, and travel worldwide to places where, as a transgender person, you were often potentially in danger of becoming the victim of a hate crime?” The answer to this is really quite…
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On The Road
Ever since Paralian was published, readers have sent me photos of themselves with the book. These pics have come in from all over the world and have always made my day (thanks everyone!). Here just one awesome example from Chris Gobine who is currently taking Paralian on a trip around the world and stopped for…
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Paralian has won a 2nd Literary Award
Paralian just won its 2nd literary award: the New Apple Award for Excellence in Independent Publishing! https://www.newappleliterary.com/2016Aw…/2016awardsCat38.html I’m immensely grateful for this surprising honour. And, it lifts my spirits to see Paralian understood for the inspiring tour de force that it is. Thanks to the New Apple Awards team and thanks to all of you…
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Writers Resist
Beginning of this year, ‘Writers Resist’ events were held all over the world. These readings were to remind ourselves of the importance of human rights, freedom of speech, and mutual respect. Here in Zurich, on a mid-January evening, we spoke up as well, reading from many different works of literature (including our own) in front…
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Milestones
The road is the destination and every milestone serves a purpose. In my case, to name just a few, being orphaned and then adopted; living with my gay, often helpless father; surviving my paranoid, neurotic mother; having the greatest grandma of all; spasticity in my legs as a child which kept me from being able…
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Story of the Day
My post “You don’t Have To” is Story of the Day on Scriggler today! Read more here. Thanks @DSelemir and Scriggler! #Paralian #LiamKlenk #lifejourney #beyourself #nobox #nolabels
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Hello Mom
The unforgettable day I met my birth mom for the first time… and, at the same time, a rare photographic moment, captured just months before I had gender reassignment surgery… “My biological mom lived on the top floor of the four-story apartment building. There was no elevator. With every step up, my heart soared and…
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You Always Can – A Story of Coming Home to Myself
Just put this story on Bored Panda. Have a look at the actual Bored Panda page here and please upvote, like and share as much as you can all over social media. Thanks! I have always been drawn to water. Any body of water. Oceans mostly. Wanted to immerse myself. Dive in. Explore and discover. But,…
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Pinocchio
The biggest treasure underwater lies in the shallow depths of the coral reefs. And in the simple joy of softly gliding along weightlessly, being just one more unassuming organism within the endless depths. I love the wild beauty underneath those waves. The myriad shades of turquoise and blue. The diversity of ocean life all around…
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An Intricate Microcosmos
“I often hovered motionless and watched the coral reef for a while, contemplating reef fish behavior. Each organism was busy defending its way of life. Tiny fish would attack divers the moment we ventured too far into their territory. There were all kinds of characters: the camouflaged, the timid, the curious, the bullies, the cowards.…
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You Don’t Have To
From when I was four years old, I was happiest during vacations, far away from all who thought they knew me. I ran out to play, introduced myself as ‘Stefan’, and no one was the wiser. I would play “Cowboys and Indians” with the boys, roam through the forests or sand dunes and be free……
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Book Recommendations by Dr. Johanna Nemson
‘How I Got to Know My Colleagues: One Page at a Time’ A lovely blog post here about Paralian and other books from book enthusiast Dr. Johanna Nemson. Thanks so much for taking the time to dive into the diversity of our stories!
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Home
A multitude of life experiences have helped me grow into the man I am today. The world is my country. The bodies of water spread all over its surface are my true home – the one place where I feel complete in body and soul, not at odds with anything, serene, elegant, and handsome.
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Wide Open Spaces and Faraway Places
Looking out at the snowy and, admittedly, romantic winter scenery in Zurich, I find myself thinking of far away places. All my life I’ve dreamt of living abroad. I’ve dreamt of wide open spaces, of being closer to wild nature. Thankfully, I’ve been there in the past and hopefully will find chances to venture out…
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Starry Skies and Daring Dreams
On May 28th this year, a dream came true: I published my memoir ‘Paralian’. It hasn’t been an easy journey. Far from it really. But, I appreciate the intensity of the experience. I haven’t sold thousands like I naively hoped to, either. Instead, I was reminded of why I began writing my story in the…
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Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas to all of you out there. Wishing you many magical moments over the holidays and in the years to come! xxx
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Joy
My intensity has always been my greatest strength. But it has also always been my greatest weakness. The line between passion and obsession is razor-thin… Like recently, I finally woke up and realized I was making myself miserable by pushing way too hard to get my book out there. I forgot to remember the most…
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Unforgettable Journeys
Good stories touch you so deeply, your heart rate accelerates. You feel enchanted, glimpsing the entire meaning of existence for the briefest of moments. I’m addicted to finding those kind of tales. It can be anything from true life stories to fantasy. Be it immersing myself in 3D cinematic bliss, watching movies at home, binge-watching…
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5 Stars for Paralian by Readers’ Favorite
Amazing review of Paralian by Viga Boland for Readers’ Favorite…”This is not a memoir for the squeamish. Details are raw, vivid, honest. Nor, as mentioned above, is it a read for the impatient or someone looking for quick entertainment. Paralian is for those who enjoy learning something new when they read and who like finding…
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Honorable Mention for Paralian
Yay, Paralian has just received an honorable mention at this year’s Rainbow Awards. Read more here. I’m immensely happy. Big thanks to the Rainbow Awards judges!
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Imagine …
“Some men are born in their bodies, others have to fight for it.” This is not just another quote. Gender dysphoria unfortunately is a reality for many. I myself was struggling with it for many years until I finally transitioned from Stefanie to Liam when I was twenty-three years old. A weight, as unbearably heavy…
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A Chat With Hungry Monsters
Great interview was just published online! Take a moment and have a look here. Thanks to the Hungry Monsters for devouring my book and for taking the time to chat with me after!