"I’ll tell you this, Cami. If heaven excludes women like you and the other trans people that I’ve known over the years, just because they are trans, then I don’t want any part of it. I’ll stay with you. You’re my people.”

The Courtship of Cerridwen Circe Whitethorn
Chapter 9: Mother's Advice

I don't think there is anything more precious to a daughter than spending time with her mother. Since becoming Cerridwen my mom has made a point to spend more time with me, guiding me if you will down the fable path of womanhood. At first I tried to hide the fact that I was seeing a boy from my mom. But people talk in this small town and my mother has an ear for gossip. Plus, she was a hairdresser by trade, and people love to gossip while getting their haircut, colored, styled, and washed.

The Courtship of Cerridwen Circe Whitethorn
Chapter 7: Bridal Dream

The Courtship of Cerridwen Circe Whitethorn
Chapter 5: Confused Feeling

The Courtship of Cerridwen Circe Whitethorn
Chapter 3: Movie Date

Plaza Twin Cinema located at the end of Main Street is the last of a dying breed, it's one of the few remaining mom and pop owned cinema's. Locally owned and locally operated. It has served Benton faithfully since it opened in the late sixties some sixty something years ago. Anyway if you wanted to see a movie in town this was the place to go.

The Courtship of Cerridwen Circe Whitethorn
Chapter 2: Lunch Date

If you've ever watched any romantic anime you're bound to see one more scene where the main couple share a huge homemade lunch box at school. Normally it's somewhere private, away from the busy hustle and bustle of the main school. Normally they share their lunch either on the roof of the school or in a deserted classroom. Another popular scene is the two will often share an umbrella on rainy days. Often while holding hands. Sharing an umbrella is another one of those classic anime tropes.

"I put my self-doubt aside. The question was, who did Liz think I was? And, could I be that person?"

The Courtship of Cerridwen Circe Whitethorn
Chapter 1: The Red String of Fate

Highway in Heels
By Sabrina G. Langton

*Stories from the real world 1
This story is slightly autobiographical.

When I was 20 years old I used to drive a van for my parents from Brooklyn to Tarrytown New York once a week to drop off merchandise for retail shops in the area. I always had a full van on the way up, but on the way down the van was almost empty. It was the summer of 1985 and I was given twenty-five to forty dollars, plus gas to make the drive. I did this for the entire summer while I was home from college.

-15- 
Greensleeves & The Maid that Sold her Barley

Asked to join a sorority, life will not let Morgan just be. And What girl can resist her first romance?

A deep blush colored my face as I peered into the floor length mirror. The reflection showed a girl with blonde hair, baby blue eyes, and a petite frame. The girl was also dressed in one of the most embarrassing costumes I've ever laid eyes on. The costume was a short white dress with black spots. The accessories included a purple dog collar with a golden nameplate that read 'Jamie' engraved on it. And last but not least a pair of black dog ears. A small sigh escaped my lips as I spun around. This has to be the dumbest thing I've ever volunteered to do.

In the foyer of Albert Sidney Johnston's Memorial Library there hangs an old oil portrait of a woman who is dressed in a black dress with a high lacy white collar. Her raven hair is gathered at the back of her head and is tied back in a nice, neat bun. Her face is set in what seems permanent scowl and her high cheekbones seemed sunk in. At the bottom of the painting one would find the name of the woman. “Mercy Anna Howard '' Followed by “Head Librarian” and beside that “1870 till 1920”.

Morgan has his 18th birthday, leaves foster care, and begins his adult life. Already often mistaken for a girl, circumstances and his personality move him ever closer to the gender boundary.

Breakfast was brought to me the next morning, it was a simple breakfast, grits, boiled turkey bacon, toast, and milk. Still worn out from the nights before I ate and fell asleep, I awoke in time for lunch, a piece of broiled fish seasoned with just lemon juice and dill, steamed broccoli, and tea. Still tired I ate and again I fell asleep, dinner was a little better, roasted chicken seasoned with lemon and pepper, more steamed broccoli, a small slice of yellow cake with chocolate icing and more tea. Again tired I ate and fell asleep.

I woke up the next morning feeling a little better, I was starting to breathe a little easier, my throat was so sore and I felt my fever starting to retreat. Breakfast was soon served to me, it was a homey breakfast of boiled turkey bacon, scrambled eggs, without salt and pepper of course. Toast without butter, and a small bottle of chocolate milk. Out of hunger I ate every morsel and left not a scrap of egg or a speck of crust on my plate.

Hospitals are one of the most depressing places on earth. Everything reeks of antiseptic and disinfectant, the food is bland and the portions are small. Plus, you can't have a moment's peace to yourself and you have no privacy whatsoever. And guess what? I'm going to be spending my Easter Weekend here on the fifth floor of Mississippi Medical Center because mother nature hates me.