Family and friends of a transexual
By Stephanie Castle
GO TO PAGE 1 2 3 4 5
Are there conclusions to be drawn from this? Obviously
there are even though they cannot be offered as an infallible
formula. After all, oafish prejudice and outright negativism must be
allowed for and all of us must know of some people for whom any
explanation would be a pure waste of effort.
Any guidelines one can
devise will probably reflect one's own personality and
characteristics. Being a positive, resolute and quietly purposeful
person, as I am in any event, helps a lot. I am not
suggesting that I can hand anyone else a basic blue print, with the
suggestion that now that one is armed with that, one can go out and
build the answers like creating a sandcastle on the beach, but if the
guidelines I have adopted for myself are of any help to anyone else,
here they are for better or worse:
1) Get right to the point. Define your
orientation quickly and follow up with a definition of what you are
not. This clears the air of the conclusions (immediately and usually
wrongly drawn) as to what they think you are. Remember that
transexuals, gays and transvestites are all components of the
same bag of potatoes in the minds of the ignorant.
2) Let honesty prevail. Be patient, you are
introducing them to a difficult and complex subject. Do not obscure
the situation by 'beating around the bush' and do not be afraid to be
personal about yourself.
3) Use qualified professional back up if available
to enhance credibility, but don't use this as a crutch. You are the
one who has had to come to terms with yourself, and you are the one
who has to carry the ball in dealing with outside relationships.
GO TO PAGE 1 2 3 4 5
|
