OUR COVER GIRL

From The Beginning

To -

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by Karin (5-H-12) FPE

Would you believe Karin? Tis true, that is the name my parents christened their baby boy when he came into the world some thirty years ago.

Now would you believe this had anything to do with my start into the world of transvestism? I don't. Because from the few childhood experiences that I can remember having any relation to trans- vestism, the desire came from within. None of them were the usual reasons or related backgrounds that reportedly play a part in forming a transvestite. Incidentally, until this day I have never asked my parents why they named me Karin. Were I in closer touch with them, I might ask them just out of curio- sity. When I started using a femme name, I chose Karin which is more or less confusing depending upon who you are.

There were only a few incidents during my child- hood that could be associated with transvestism that I can recall. But I am sure that there were and are hundreds of thousands of other boys who experienced similar events and aren't transvestites. But I'm beginning to get into theory now so I'll bow out and leave that to Virginia and Dr. Benjamin.

Naturally, during the young adult years I real- ized that I was different and went through many fruitless soul searching periods, which, due to my lack of knowledge and of adequate outside understand- ing led me to suspect that I might be homosexual. This fearful suspicion stayed with me all through four years of armed sevice and up until very recently

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