My "awakening" was at age 5, when someone gave a large bag of donated clothes to my mother to take to our church's clothing charity. I found a pretty white petticoat that I knew right away that I had to have. At night, I would put it on for a while, and then stash it under the mattress - until one night I fell asleep, and my mother found me wearing it when she came into the room the next morning. She wasn't upset but took it away saying that "your father won't understand". It wasn't until many years later that I realized that SHE understood something about me that others didn't. Which is probably why, as she would be getting ready for work, would always put lipstick on my lips when I asked - but that's a whole other story. I wish now that I'd come out as my true self before she passed, and somehow, I believe it wouldn't have come as a surprise...lol!
