[Magdalen] Thanksgiving morning

[Marion Thompson]

I'm so glad to hear that it all went well.  Sometimes we have nothing to 
fear but fear itself.  One day at a time.  Well done! Enjoy your quiet time.

Marion, a pilgrim

On 11/27/2014 6:03 PM, Kristin Rollins wrote:
> Thank you all. It all went quite well, and reminded me of similar family gatherings back home. Though the scavenger hunt judging was something I wouldn't have believed without seeing it myself.
>
> A good day, and I wonder if it was in some ways a blessing to be back in this way of being seen for the day. And not feeling the pressure to convince others that I am who I am. Um, maybe I should have rephrased that last bit!
>
> After the chaos, we're both enjoying some quiet time in our room. Tomorrow, we'll drive back home and wait for the cats top forgive our absence from their service for a little less than 48 hours.
>
> Kristin
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>> On Nov 27, 2014, at 6:00 AM, Kristin Rollins <kristin at verumsolum.com> wrote:
>>
>> I write from the darkness of a hotel room. Hotels are one of the rare
>> times I am annoyed by my internal clock being so different from my
>> wife's. Because there is so little to do that won't risk disturbing her
>> sleep. Even worse, this time I forgot my Bluetooth headphones, so
>> podcasts and radio listening are out.
>>
>> I am also quite nervous. We are having Thanksgiving dinner with members
>> of Heather's father's side of the family. I don't believe he and my
>> mother-in-law will be present, as they hurriedly prepare a second
>> location of their store for its opening day: Black Friday. (Yes,
>> really.) So I expect that the only person I will have previously met in
>> person today will be Heather. (One or two of them have friended me on
>> Facebook, but any interaction we've had there has been pretty
>> superficial.)
>>
>> And to top it off, Heather's family has not yet been told of my news.
>> And Thanksgiving is obviously not the day for that (as I remembered last
>> month when I delayed coming out to my father because it was Canadian
>> Thanksgiving). So I am "introducing myself" to people I have never met
>> before, while hiding who I really am, and answering to an old name and
>> perceived gender. I know it is the right decision in the circumstances
>> of this situation, but of course it isn't easy, and the pre-dawn
>> darkness doesn't help as I sit, the only person awake in the room for
>> hours.
>>
>> I know there are others who have it worse than I do. But there are so
>> many "if onlys" in this situation that I don't dwell on, but are so easy
>> to pop up unbidden. If only I had met these people before today. If only
>> time hadn't gotten away, and we'd managed to tell my in-laws before it
>> was too late for today. But the plan is only to be there for a few
>> hours. We have a hotel room about a half-hour, I think, from where the
>> family is gathering. Mealtime is expected to be an hour or two after we
>> get there. And when we leave, I can relax.
>>
>> It's one day. I've done it before. It won't be the end of the world. But
>> I'm really not looking forward to dancing around questions with awkward
>> answers posed by mostly complete strangers.
>>
>> -- 
>>   Kristin Rollins
>>   kristin at verumsolum.com
>>   Portsmouth, VA