By Any Other Name

I have a confession to make. I am using a pen name and I have changed the names of my family and friends. There are a few reasons why I am choosing to do this. As you may or may not know, my son is transgender. Family and close friends know. Co-workers know. Classmates know. That might seem like a large group, but it isn’t. Not really. Almost three years later, there are many who do not know. In time I’m sure some of those people will also know. Some will never know, depending on their importance in our lives or the frequency with which we see them.

 

As K began his transition, it was (and remains always) extremely important that he’s accepted as a guy. People who meet him now know him only as male. It is his choice whether or not he shares his history with friends or coworkers in his life now. So, out of respect for his privacy I use a pen name.

 

The other, less important, reason I’m undercover is because I’m shy. I’m terrified of sharing my writing with anyone, although my husband would kill to read something I wrote. I used to write stories and read them to my sisters and they loved them- but boy, were they bad!!!

 

On a side note, only names have been changed. Everything else is 100% me, straight from my heart. And I am Kat. Truth be told, if I could have picked my name, I would have chosen Katherine. I wanted one of my kids to have the name but a boy named Kat? Talk about gender confusion!