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Ready to meet my male friends for the first time as a woman (May 2010) |
Eleven years ago, I came out to a friend, who I had known for over 15 years and lived 2500 miles away. Except for one or two face-to-face encounters at ham radio conferences each year, all our communications were by e-mail. The next conference I attended would be en femme and I wanted to alert him beforehand.In anticipation of coming out, I composed a 500-word letter of explanation. I copied the words into a blank e-mail, made a few changes, then I stared at the Send button for a few hours. I did not actually stare at the Send button all that time, but for over three hours, I did consider whether or not to send the e-mail.
It was a tough decision. In the past, I have come out to friends and acquaintances who have known me for a long or short time, but all of them were women. I found it very easy to come out to women. I guess because I am telling them that I am on their team.
Men were not so easy. Just encountering men when I was en femme gave me pause; coming out to a man was unthinkable. My friend would be the first male friend or acquaintance I would come out to.
I finally realized that I had to tell him, so I hit the Send button and girded myself for his reply. I was so worried about his response that I did not check my e-mails the rest of the afternoon. Finally, after dinner, I looked for his reply, found it and opened it.
He wrote, “Thank you for the e-mail. I am sure it was hard to send. But rest assured, you have my respect and support. I think it is best that a person be true to themselves, and you are doing just that. You go girl!”
He floored me with “You go girl!” Now, that’s a real friend!
By the way, in the ensuing 11 years, my coming outs have had such good outcomes that I now think nothing of coming out to males, as well as females from my past. Some people are surprised, some not so much, but either way, I have never had a negative reaction. On the contrary, most reactions are very positive just like my friend above.
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Wearing Veronica Beard |
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Victor McDoom |