LGBTQ+ … Me?

I do not want trivialize LGBTQ issues--or commit cultural appropriation. But. Sometimes people address me as a man. And sometimes they eye me with perplexity as if trying to figure out what the hell I am. I get it. Though it's none of my business, I too try to attach a gender to people I meet. And I am tall with short gray hair and an unreconstructed mastectomy, and I wear jeans and T-shirts. So who can blame people for wondering? It's just that 10 years ago I had no idea what "trans" meant. And now I feel like I have some idea of what it feels like--from personal experience. The other day, I bought a tote bag with bright rainbow-striped straps, and on the outside pocket is a children's-book rainbow arcing over a little red heart. It looks like a mom bag, but also like a pride statement. Now when people look at me with inquiring eyes, I can't tell if the answers are clearer or murkier.




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