Julie Ross
Blogger,
George.Jessie.LoveRaising a Transgender Child: A Star is Born
Posted: 04/20/2012 5:08 pm
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/julie-ross/transgender-children_b_1441773.htmlEight months ago, my nine-year-old son tearfully shared with me that "his whole life, he had wanted to be a girl". Pressed by the therapist (who, thank G-d, was in the room with us) to clarify whether he wants to be a girl or is a girl, George immediately replied that he is a girl. And so began a crazy-ass adventure that I never, in a million years, expected to find my child or, frankly, myself, on.
To be clear, my husband Rich and I always knew that George (who is now Jessie) was different from not only our older son, but from other kids -- male and female alike. With sparkling eyes and a wildly observant and funny personality, he was known by everyone everywhere we went. Never one to shy away from a conversation or situation (particularly if it involved dolls, dresses, wigs or mermaid tails), he captured the attention of anyone he came into contact with. When behaviors that concerned us in preschool and kindergarten -- including, but by no means limited to his self portraits (a frequent drawing assignment) consistently depicting a girl in a dress with long, flowing hair -- continued with even greater vigor in first, second and third grades. We concluded that he was probably going to grow up to be gay, yet didn't quite buy it ourselves. He was a boy who greatly appreciated a beautiful girl and what she was wearing. He never met a doll, wig, dress or mermaid tail that he didn't feel a total compulsion to own -- no matter how strongly he had to fight for it. And despite the fact that he was not even slightly effeminate, there were several occasions that he harassed and harangued me for hours on end requesting everything from hair extensions to wigs to dolls. It never added up. And then he asked for (and by "asked for" I mean "demanded") a pierced ear.
