A girl. It was all a bit of a shock."The principal made a face that said she still wasn't sure. "I'm sorryif I'm being dense. We've had trans-students...enrolled here before andour school policy is that everyone is entitled to an education. But Idon't like to have the wool pulled over my eyes. If you catch mydrift."Mother and I looked at each other and I could see in her eyes thatneither of us was catching her drift at all. But we let it drop."Of course, until the politicians finish making up. “Julia moved from the obligatory kneeling posture on the bench, knelt as instructed and pressed her nose to the wood. She closed her eyes, fighting down her thoughts... the sudden prickling resurgence of pride... and willed herself to obey.Shut off your mind, she said to herself. But how difficult it was!„Next,“ said Miss Julia, „you dip your back here...“ She put a finger in the small of Julia’s back, „and you stickyour bottom as high as you can. Do that...“Julia obeyed, gritting her teeth.. The mother was standing there and she held out her arms. Megan’s resolve crumpled and she went to her then wept on her shoulder. “There, there. Shhhhh, shhhhh there now, there” she soothed while gently stroking Megan’s shoulder.“I’m Helen. What’s your name?” she asked in her soft Scottish lilt.“Megan” she replied in a strangled voice. “Well, Megan I’m a great believer in a nice cup of tea when things seem wrong. Come along now.” She took charge as only a mother of young children can when. They filled him, called to him and pulled him. His hesitation was momentary, the words drawing him back. They galvanized within him, pushing out all the doubts and renewing his rage.The anger he felt now was a pale imitation of what had gone before but he recognized the boundaries of the anger were artificial and self-imposed. He was limiting his rage because it terrified him. What he had become before terrified him.In the midst of the anger, confusion tore at him. He could not trust what he.