When I Walked Into the Courtroom in Full Uniform, My Father Laughed. My Mother Sighed. Then the Judge Looked Up, His Voice Breaking: “Dear God… It’s Really Her.” The Room Went Silent. They Had No Idea Who I Had Become.

catered, with a banner across the fence. My scholarship award, which had been competitive enough to make my advisor tell me she had only seen three of them in fifteen years, was acknowledged with a handshake.

I am not telling you this to generate sympathy. I am telling you this because it is the context without which nothing that follows makes sense.continue reading …