So yesterday I had my weekly work-out with C., my Pilates instructor to whom I came out to last week. As requested, I brought a half-dozen photos of myself en femme. C. said she thought I looked nice and complimented me on a couple of my wigs.

We talked about my crossdressing during the rest of the session—albeit it was a bit of fragmented conversation, since it was I was trying to talk and work-out at the same time. Her questions were what you might expect: Did my friends and family know? Where did I go out? What did I do when I was out? Did I ever want to be a woman? What about dating? Did I have a femme name? And so on. She did like my analogy of crossdressers taking a “gender vacation,” which seemed to resonate with her.

C. seemed genuinely curious and puzzled by how deeply in the closet we are or why partners might have such trouble with. “What’s the big deal?” she said. I’m sure she’s got more questions—and there’s a couple points I wanted raise—so I’m looking forward to our next session. The thing is… I’m sure she doesn’t fully “get” it, but she doesn’t need to. She’s OK with it regardless.
In a bit of apropos timing, during the drive home that evening, I heard Terry Gross on “Fresh Air” interview actor Peter Dinklage, best known for his starring role in “The Station Agent.” Much of interview dealt with Dinklage’s dwarfism, and I really liked a number Dinklage’s comments, which were to the effect that it’s something that he deals with from time to time as part of his life, but it doesn’t define him.