Talk about change!  I’m writing this blog post in support of Bruce Jenner and of a society I’m hoping has changed enough for a woman like her to live safely in it.

As a girl I cheered for Bruce Jenner as the World’s Greatest Athlete.  She was the epitome of what was deemed masculine, being both a superstar athlete and good looking.  But since then I hadn’t thought much about Bruce Jenner until a few years back when she appeared as part of the Kardashian (I never thought I would use that name in my blog) drama.  While I can’t say I was a fan (ok, in fairness, I never watched the show) I would see snippets of Bruce Jenner in tabloids looking rather sad and lost.   She looked more like a defeated ghost of a man than a champion.

So when I heard a promotion for the interview with Diane Sawyer, I watched it, in part selfishly wishing to reclaim my respect for Bruce.  Although I worried it would be just more tabloid drama, I was slowly pulled in by a watching a human being so completely genuine and authentic.  I thought about her bravery in opening up to her family and the public, and the genuine risk she was taking for a backlash of emotional and even physical violence.   It was a relief to see her family support and how relaxed and finally at ease she seemed.  I was really moved by her long and painful journey in claiming her identity and, more importantly than earning my respect, finally achieving self-respect.  Diane Sawyer asked her about the impending change of beginning to dress and live as a woman, and Bruce tells her, so assuredly, how it is only a change for others.  For her, she is finally being who she has always been.

While her transparency is important to me in learning how to support the transgender community, I can’t help thinking how we can all relate and be inspired.  Every one of us has twisted ourselves in some way to conform and be accepted.  We hide our true self with a false self that protects us from rejection.  It takes many of us a long time to shed our shells and expose the tender skin we live in.  There are so many people seeking the safety of therapy rooms, on-line connections, and support groups to secretly try on their real identity.  So I write this in support of Bruce Jenner, and all who claim their right to live peacefully as who they are.  Being rejected for our true self is crushing to our esteem, but hiding ourselves from ourselves is soul crushing.  Let’s celebrate not only Bruce Jenner, but the change that creates a world more welcoming for Bruce and all of us just like her, hoping to live as who we are without fear.