I wanted to stop in and say that I haven't been able to read all of these because we have moved states, and I think the new place is trying to kill me 🤣, but I've loved every one that I've read, and I really like this format, for lack of a better word. I "introduced" my oldest to Jeffrey Marsh in 2020/21-ish. They were doing online school, and had a lot of downtime. I've known about trans people forever, but I'd never heard of non-binary. I wanted my kids to learn about everyone in the LGBTQ+ community, and to tell them we accept and love everyone. Well, apparently, they hadn't been comfortable with themselves for quite some time. They realized that non-binary was the term for how they felt. Not long after, my youngest realized the same. It's amazing what can happen when we name things, and live out loud.
What an amazing way to learn you had a companion on your journey! And at the same time, I can’t imagine the mixture of hope, joy and parental concern/protectiveness. Thank you for sharing this!🙏
Robin, this is such a radiant counter-draft to what I still experience, and I feel so much joy for you—deep, genuine, beyond words.
Reading your story, I found myself holding two futures side by side. Yours, where joy moves freely and love speaks in clear sentences. And mine, still entangled in places where people behave politically correct on the surface, while carrying layers of unacknowledged prejudice that seep into every interaction. I often feel like I live in two parallel realities: one shaped by generational openness and another still tightly held by systems that refuse to name what they reproduce.
In Germany, most openly non-binary folks I meet are younger—40 and under—while I’m nearing 60. We can share an evening, a good conversation even, yet our lives are shaped so differently, we rarely build the kind of connection friendship rests on. The gap isn’t just age—it’s history, survival strategy, expectations. And in rural areas, even among people my age, the mindset remains so firmly intact that attempts at truth-telling often land as accusations. So the door stays closed, even when it appears wide open.
And then I read your garden moment—and your son’s “GREAT!!” and it feels like watching sunlight land somewhere new. You’ve shown what’s possible when love speaks early, and truth is welcomed, not feared. That possibility nourishes something in me. Thank you for planting it so fully in this story.
I wanted to stop in and say that I haven't been able to read all of these because we have moved states, and I think the new place is trying to kill me 🤣, but I've loved every one that I've read, and I really like this format, for lack of a better word. I "introduced" my oldest to Jeffrey Marsh in 2020/21-ish. They were doing online school, and had a lot of downtime. I've known about trans people forever, but I'd never heard of non-binary. I wanted my kids to learn about everyone in the LGBTQ+ community, and to tell them we accept and love everyone. Well, apparently, they hadn't been comfortable with themselves for quite some time. They realized that non-binary was the term for how they felt. Not long after, my youngest realized the same. It's amazing what can happen when we name things, and live out loud.
What an amazing way to learn you had a companion on your journey! And at the same time, I can’t imagine the mixture of hope, joy and parental concern/protectiveness. Thank you for sharing this!🙏
What a lucky kid he is to have a dad like you! 💜🩷🤍🩵
Robin, this is such a radiant counter-draft to what I still experience, and I feel so much joy for you—deep, genuine, beyond words.
Reading your story, I found myself holding two futures side by side. Yours, where joy moves freely and love speaks in clear sentences. And mine, still entangled in places where people behave politically correct on the surface, while carrying layers of unacknowledged prejudice that seep into every interaction. I often feel like I live in two parallel realities: one shaped by generational openness and another still tightly held by systems that refuse to name what they reproduce.
In Germany, most openly non-binary folks I meet are younger—40 and under—while I’m nearing 60. We can share an evening, a good conversation even, yet our lives are shaped so differently, we rarely build the kind of connection friendship rests on. The gap isn’t just age—it’s history, survival strategy, expectations. And in rural areas, even among people my age, the mindset remains so firmly intact that attempts at truth-telling often land as accusations. So the door stays closed, even when it appears wide open.
And then I read your garden moment—and your son’s “GREAT!!” and it feels like watching sunlight land somewhere new. You’ve shown what’s possible when love speaks early, and truth is welcomed, not feared. That possibility nourishes something in me. Thank you for planting it so fully in this story.
This is beautiful ❤️ thank you for sharing ❤️