My gender journey as a nonbinary Person.... It’s strange because I feel like I was gender neutral before the term existed. I never really understood why I didn’t feel male or female until I started to hear language that resonated with how I felt. Being gender queer I have not only felt misunderstood by my cisgender family and colleagues but also my transgender friends as well. My gender journey has been long and mostly internal because I never expected anyone to acknowledge or understand my feelings, because on both sides no one really has. This past weekend my partner of 12 years asked if I still felt comfortable with him calling me by my birth name which very few people in this world do, Mostly because I always introduce myself as Honey. I told him I don’t feel any kind of way when he calls me James but it feels better when he calls me Honey. I honestly never thought James was a good fit for me. I say all this to say I often get asked what my real name is and for that reason I say just because you can’t tell someone’s gender doesn’t make it less of a reality for their experience. Most people who know me know that I am nonbinary but for those who don’t, my gender is X and my name is Honey both in and out of drag. I’m not expecting anyone to understand that but just letting it be known I am most comfortable and affirmed when being addressed as such. 📸 @davidelaffe