T is for Transgender
Sunday morning at the Kinney residence was normally a time of quiet reflection about the adventures of the previous night. Another notch or two, or three on the proverbial bed post provided by random tricks that Brian would never see again, except of course in passing on the dance floor, or perhaps in a corner of Babylon’s infamous backroom. Brian poured himself a cup of coffee. He was about to have his first sip of the day when the sound of the toilet reminded him that this morning, he was not alone. “Morning, Sonny-boy.”
“Morning, Pop.” Gus yawned as he made his entrance.
“Morning, Sonny-Boy. How did you sleep?” Brian asked.
“I slept ok.” Brian’s mirror image climbed onto the stool, and positioned himself at the breakfast counter. “You got any “Froot Loops”?
“Your mom says you can’t have “Froot Loops”. It has too much sugar,” Brian reminded him. “I’ve got “Wheaties”, and “Cheerios”.”
“Cheerios”, Gus grudgingly decided.
“Cheerios are good for you. They’re made of heart healthy oats,” Brian encouraged.
“It’s old people food. I like Froot Loops.” Gus pouted.
“Cheerios it is.” Brian removed the box from the cabinet. “So what’s on our itinerary for the day, the arcade, the new Jurassic movie?”
“The movie, I guess,” Gus said.
Brian noticed the lack of enthusiasm in his son’s voice. “We don’t have to go to the movie. We can do something else. What would you like to do?”
“It’s not the movie,” Gus insisted. “Pop, can I ask you something?”
Brian poured the Cheerios, and walked over to the refrigerator for the milk. “Uh-oh, what have you done this time?”
“I didn’t do anything,” Gus said.
“So what’s the problem?” Brian asked.
“Did you know that Bruce Jenner doesn’t want to be a guy anymore? He wants to be a girl now!” Gus said.
“Yeah, I heard something about that,” Brian said casually.
“Why would anybody want to do that?” Gus wondered out loud.
Brian slid the breakfast bowl over to his son. “I’m not exactly sure,” he said. “Sometimes people believe they were born in the wrong body, and when they become old enough, they decide to change into the body they think they should be in.”
“You mean like an alien?” Gus asked.
“No, not quite like an alien. People like Bruce Jenner are just regular people like you and me, who happen to be a little mixed up. They’re called transgender people,” Brian explained. “Eat your cereal, before it gets soggy.”
Gus took a spoonful of Cheerios. “How does a transgender guy become a girl?” he asked.
Brian took a sip of his coffee. “With a lot of surgery, and a lot of hormone shots,” he said.
“What’s a hormone?” Gus asked.
“Those are the cells in your blood that let you know if you’re a boy, or a girl,” Brian said.
“Do you have hormones?” Gus asked.
“Uh-huh. Everybody has them,” Brian said.
“Tyler said that Bruce Jenner is going to have his dick cut off? Is that true?” Gus continued.
“I don’t know, maybe.” Brian shrugged. “Not all transgender men want to have their dicks cut off. Some want to keep them.”
Gus looked confused. “How can a man be a woman if he still has a penis, and how can he still be Kim Kardashian’s dad if he turns into a woman?” he asked.
Brian pondered his answer for a moment. “It’s hard to explain, son. Let’s hold this conversation until you’re older,” he decided.
Gus looked down at his soggy bowl of Cheerios. “Tyler said that his dad said that Bruce Jenner is a fag. That’s why he wants to be a woman. You don’t want to be a woman, do you, Pop?”
Brian reached over, and gently lifted his son’s face. “Nah, I could never be a woman. I’m having too much fun being your Pop.” He smiled.
“What about Justin? Do you think he might want to be a woman? He kinda looks like one,” Gus noted.
“Eat your cereal, Gus.” Brian said.
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