1. There isa large segmentof ourpopulationthatknowsBruce Jennerasa formerOlympicgoldmedalist
intrack andfieldwaybackin the 70’s. He appearedina bunch of mediocre made forTV moviesandI
readthat he wasevenErikEstrada’s replacementfora brief time onthe TV show CHiPs(I lovedthat
show). There’salsoasegmentof the populationthatknowshimasthe patriarch on thatterrible
Kardashians‘reality’show,andif Ieverwatched more thanten secondsof an episode Imightbe able to
tell youwhatexactly he didonthere.
Lately,though,Bruce Jennerhasbecome quite widelyknownforsomethingthathasnothingtodo with
sportingachievementsorhorrible television.Yousee,Bruce Jennerhasmade itverypublicknowledge
that he no longerwantsto be a man and has takenseveral stepstowardhisgoal of eventuallylivinghis
life asa woman – evenconsideringcomplete genderreassignmentsurgery;asex change inlayman’s
terms.
While some peopleare gossipingaboutthis,pokingfuninmanycases,andgenerallyshakingtheirheads
indisbelief,Ihave takenadifferentapproach. Assomeone whowouldprobablyfeel weirdtakinga
bubble bath because itfeelsalittle too“girly”,the conceptof someone identifyingasa gender
completelydifferentthanwhattheywere bornisalmostunfathomabletome.It’smystifyingbut
incrediblyinterestingatthe same time. What’sevenmore interestingisthatI see arounda half dozen
people ona dailybasis livingtheirlivesinmuchthe same wayas Mr. Jennerisattemptingtodo.
You see folks,thisisn’tjustatabloidheadline. Ihave startedto notice the numberof folksinourlittle
citythat are goingthroughtheirown processof genderidentifying. Thisisaveryreal phenomenonthat
ishappeningrighthere athome and I thinkitneedstobe talkedabouta little more.Evenmore than
beingtalkedabout,Ithinkit’ssomethingthatneedstobe understoodbecause the people whoare
goingthroughthistransitionare,Ibelieve,some of the bravestpeoplealiveandtheydeserveour
support.
I’mnot proudto say it,but I wouldn’thave alwaysthoughtthisway. Igrew up ina verysmall townthat
was rife with manybackwardsattitudes –not the leastof whichwas homophobia.Inourbackwoods
little community,boyslikedgirlsandgirlslikedboys –and anyone whodeclaredthattheydidn’tfitthis
moldwouldsimplybe tormentedandmade anexample of sorelentlessly thatnobodywouldeverthink
about‘comingout’. It’s probablywhyIdidn’tfindoutuntil we were all inUniversitythat2 of my closest
friendssince grade school were gay.Theysaidthattheywere,literally,petrifiedof outingthemselvesas
homosexualsinourtownbecause they wouldhave beenalmostcompletelyostracized.
The sad part is that throughmyupbringingandimmaturity,Imayhave beenamongthe folkswho
tormentedthese guyswhoIhadalwaysseenasmy friends –and that was onlybecause theylovedand
were attractedto meninsteadof women. Couldyouimagine the numberof headsthatwouldhave
explodedif these guyshadannouncedthatthey feltasthoughmaybe theyshouldhave beenwomen
insteadof men? Eventhoughsexual orientationandgenderidentificationsometimeshave nothingtodo
withone another, itwouldhave beenaperfectstormof conditionsthatprobablywouldhave ledto
burningsat the stake.Beinggaywouldhave beenalittle molehill comparedtothe mountainof aChris

2. whodecidedthatmaybe he was reallya Christine.
Thankfully,the stigmaof homosexualityhasbeenreducedsignificantlyinoursociety.Iprobablyknowas
manygay people asI do straightfolks andtheyare all very proud of who theyare.There will alwaysbe
detractors,butmost people have movedpastthe pointwhere theyare shockedandoutragedbywho
someone choosestoshare theirbedwith. Thatbeingsaid,eventhoughmymindmaybe far more open
than itwas whenIwas younger,letme goon record as sayingthiswhole
transgender/transsexual/intergenderthingiscompletelyunchartedterritoryforthisoldfellah,andI
reallydon’tunderstandit muchat all.The goodnewsisI want to understanditbecause anyone whohas
the intestinal fortitude tolive theirlife completely oblivioustowhatothersthinkof themissomeone I
wantto be inthe corner of.
In our lives,we all wearmasksdependingonwhowe are dealingwith.One foryourfriends,one foryour
family,one foryourboss – the listgoeson.I am in complete awe of those whonotonlyrefuse towear
these maskstoimpressothers,buttheydon’tlie tothemselvesaboutwhotheyare either.Whetherit’s
Bruce Jennerorthe fellowatthe coffee shop,theymake usall lookweakwiththeircourage tonotlive
withinthe limitsof whatsocietyexpectsfromthem.
I’dlove to knowmore aboutit all but I have noideawhere toevenstart.
Perhapslisteningtoa formerOlympicgoldmedalistwithoutsnidejudgmentisaplace forus all to begin.