~Walking in New Shoes~

Last month was Dee and my 19th wedding anniversary. Hard to believe it has been 19 years already, it just amazes me how fast time flies. We look at it with a lot of pride knowing that not many couples have that kind of longevity and yet in the bigger picture it's not really anything. Why would I discount my wedding anniversary and not really anything?

Well the best way to view it is to simply say that Diane I met in June of 1983, were dating in Nov and steady on my birthday that Dec so legitimately we have 26 years of history together. We are that rare couple that knew each other since Diane's senior year of highschool. I guess on some level you could say that I was her highschool sweetheart. How often do you ever hear of relationships lasting THAT long. Certainly something to be proud of.

On Sept 15th we received the usual anniversary card in the mail from my in-laws sending their well wishes. It was as we were backing into the driveway that I noticed the manner in which the envelope had been address. "Ms Diane Maynard and Ms K Maynard." I flashed the envelope over at Dee and it put a smile on her face.

When we got settled in after our work day that night Diane called her mom to let her know we had received the card and she made it a point to thank her for the manner in which the card had been addressed. This was the first time that I had been address in a female manner on any correspondence with her family, usually it was just K Maynard.

Her mom explained to her that she had been reading a story about wedding invitations and how a transgender family member should be addressed when sending this invitation to which Dear Abby explains that gender identification should be written to the preferred gender of the recipient. My mother in law took that letter to heart and made sure to remember that when sending our card. I can't tell you how nice of a feeling that was ….

Funny how one Dear Abby answer can make a difference in other peoples lives.

Rock on ~Karyn~