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I have just received the legal paperwork, which I must fill out and file, that will begin the process of legally changing my name!!
It appears that there is a very good chance that I can have most of the fees waived, due to my financial situation, which is to say that I am considered poor. Little do they know how rich all of you make me feel, huh?
Obviously, the paperwork is, to me, a hopeless morass of legalese, so I will be consulting with a friend of mine who is studying law. With any luck at all, I will be able to get everything filed and in motion before the end of the month!!
This, so soon after getting my new picture on my driver's license has really lifted my spirits, especially after the breakup between me and Ariel. We are still friends, and no one is at fault. It simply didn't work out for us. I have immense respect for Ariel, both as a person, and as an author, and I consider myself fortunate to have even had a chance with her, however brief it was. She is a very special person and, as I said, we are remaining friends. There is no fault to be laid, no blame to be assigned. We both jumped the gun, and hoped to make something work. It didn't. End of story.
This legal name change is one more step for me, toward the life I have always needed/wanted. Additionally, I have learned that my Endocrinologist has recommended, strongly, that I be given an orchiectomy, and has officially diagnosed me as transsexual. She has also indicated, in her reports, that I must be considered for complete SRS, with access to all surgical interventions necessary to complete my transition!! I will be pressing her for a letter, stating the previous, thus satisfying one more of the Benjamin Standards Of Care requirements. I already have my letter from my therapist. Now all I need is one from a psychiatrist, which might also be within easy reach.
I have all of you, my dear friends, to thank for helping me find the courage and the conviction I needed to change my life. Your advice, your understanding, your compassion, have all helped me along this twisty road toward transition. I have no words sufficient to express my deep appreciation for all you have done for me. I only have, Thank You.
Excitedly yours,
Catherine Linda Michel
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Promising
Yeah, dotting all those I's and crossing all those T's is arduous and time-consuming. Ya just gotta keep the final goal in mind, even when it may not be in sight. Best of luck to you!
'One giant step into the future, one small step from the past.'
You've got to listen to your heart. This is not a trial run; you only get one shot at life. Hark at me, who spent more than 50 years trying to be what everyone else wanted, frightened witless that anyone else would find out the truth.
Water under the bridge now, ulcers gone, nervous breakdown in the past, family lost, but I've more friends now than I can count on the fingers of several hundred hands.
As a very dear friend says, "The joy never goes away."
Congratulations.
Susie