Dear friends
After a year-and-a-half both consuming from and contributing to the forum, I think it's time for me to move on.
I still can't quite believe how much I've managed to achieve in this short time, and undoubtedly many of you have helped with your perspective and motivational optimism.
When I first clearly and unambiguously realised I was transgender some 20 years ago, the world was a much darker place for us. It scared me enough to paralyse me into inaction for two decades. When I reflect on how far we have come as a collective, we are light years ahead. Forums such as Susan's practically didn't exist all those years ago, and many of us were condemned to deal with the complexity of our lives without help or support. In this sense at least, useful advice is now just a few mouse clicks away, and people like us don't need to spend a lifetime considering that we are abnormal because of how we think and feel about ourselves.
I hope that my time on the forum has helped some people with direction and perspective during their journeys. I now stand at a crossroads I didn't really ever expect: whether to blend in and disappear, or to be visible and provide help, support and outreach in my city and country, where much work remains. Morally and personally I don't think that I can remain passive, and I hope that, after my SRS, I will be able to begin a project with an existing entity to provide vastly improved resources, support and education.
In a few days I will be closing my account, but before this I want to thank you all, especially Susan, for your friendship and kind advice.
Hugs from Madrid
Julia
