When your child isn’t ready to come out to others, it can create tension in your family. As a parent, it’s important to remember that your child’s coming out isn’t a one-time event. It’s a journey that can happen multiple times, as a child comes out first to themselves, then to loved ones, and then… Continue reading When Your Child Isn’t Ready to Come Out
I cried for most of the cold, January day when my son Leo came out as transgender. I didn’t know what I was crying about, exactly. At that time, I didn’t what it meant for Leo to be transgender. It was a word I barely understood and would have to look up to even comprehend… Continue reading You Shouldn’t Grieve in Front of Your Child
Around the time of the first anniversary of Leo’s coming out as transgender, I sat in my therapist’s office. I had just seen her a few weeks earlier, before Christmas. She knew, however, I was going to need extra support as that day drew near. So she scheduled me to come in. As I stared… Continue reading There’s No Timeline on Your Emotions
You left –In the middle of the night while I was sleeping.Before I had a chance to realize you were gone,or to say goodbye, or to tell you to be careful,as I had a thousand times before –or, that I loved you. I loved you –From the time I first heard your heart beat;when I… Continue reading Goodbye, Or Is It Hello? A Poem.
Transforming: The Bible & the Lives of Transgender Christians is more than a book about the intersection of transgender identity and the Bible. It’s a conversation about faith and a God-created identity and the ways that affirmation or rejection of these factors in transgender people labels them as other or accepted by the Christian Church.… Continue reading Review: Transforming by Austen Hartke
Each year on March 31, we observe International Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV). The purpose is to celebrate transgender, non-binary, and gender-nonconforming people worldwide. Founded in 2009, the goal of TDOV is to celebrate transgender people and the accomplishments they achieve. As a result, this brings awareness to the struggles and discrimination they continue to… Continue reading Honoring Transgender Day of Visibility
When Leo first came out as transgender, I wanted to fly a rainbow flag off our house. Our oldest, Ember, who is non-binary and bisexual, didn’t identify as transgender at the time. To properly respect both of my children, the rainbow flag was the best choice. What kept me from purchasing and flying a rainbow… Continue reading Why I Fly a Rainbow Flag if My Children Are Transgender
My oldest came out as being non-binary in a Facebook post during high school. They didn’t really say much about it and expressed that people could still use their given name and he/him/his pronouns. To my untrained, and non-understanding eye, it felt like a “this is a thing I’m trying on, and I’ll let you… Continue reading What Does it Mean to Be Non-binary?
When my son Leo first came out as transgender, one of the things I didn’t know that I needed was permission to grieve the child I thought I had. I was trying to model for others how to talk to and about Leo. How to use his new name and pronouns properly. How to talk… Continue reading When You Don’t Know Where To Go To Grieve
Several times a year, I ask my readers what their biggest struggle is with understanding or supporting transgender people. Then I open the conversation up to any other questions they might have. One reader recently asked if it was possible to tell if our children are gay (or lesbian or bisexual or transgender) before they… Continue reading Can You Tell Your Child is Gay Before They Come Out?
