Becoming

About the Book

“Becoming”. To come into being. A verb, a doing word. A process, an energy, requiring effort and commitment. A challenge. Our purpose. The pages of this book detail a journey, a pilgrimage, an evolution. This journey is without a final destination, but certainly not without clear purpose. It began with the yearning to become whole, and not with any intention to live as a woman. My pursuit of wholeness is without end, a dynamic process that became a consuming passion, and will last until my final breath. Although initially not focused on a change in gender, this path did lead to the acceptance that I am female and always have been female. This acceptance brought an inner peace, a physical health, an outer radiance and a permanent joy that were not imaginable beforehand, but created shock waves that challenged every aspect of my external world. Most books on transsexualism or transgenderism are of two types. Those written by therapists, counselors, psychologists and psychiatrists, tend to be clinical and therapeutic in nature. Other books, written by those who have actually changed gender (“transitioned”), are almost exclusively tell-all, matter-of-fact autobiographies, covering the details of a gender change and abruptly end at the surgery. Although they contain personal reactions to life changes, they rarely focus on emotional and spiritual struggle. But the internal mission is the source of the external changes - the desire to be whole, to become genuine, and to come to rest in the place of love and contentment is the only way to outward fulfillment. We must be guided by what we know but cannot see. Transsexuals - those whose bodies do not conform to inner conviction and identity. They arouse curiosity, but rarely compassion. The label is colored by distorted images from the feared, freakish fringes of society, and is lined with distortions and apprehension. To some, transsexuals are bizarre mutations of our species, or byproducts of our perverted culture. To others, they are violators of God’s will and are simply choosing to “go against nature”. Too few see them as real human beings, desperate to live genuinely, and longing to muster the courage to face the truth of their misaligned birth. Every uncommon phenomenon in our society is burdened with misunderstanding; but perhaps no group faces as much ignorance and resulting discrimination as transsexuals. And certainly no group pursues a more difficult, challenging and misunderstood path in our society. I should know. I am female; but I was born in a male body and lived most of my life as a man. Therein lays the main reason for choosing to write this book – our common calling. Over a lifetime, everyone has numerous opportunities to face truths about themselves. And everyone is called upon to make choices about these truths that can change the course of their lives and can bring them closer to fulfillment. Living an authentic life, devoid of secrets and fear, full of love and joy, is a worthy and necessary pursuit for all of us. It is perhaps our principle challenge in this life as spiritual beings. To provide inspiration and levity, I have included scores of quotations. To add insight and depth, dozens of original poems are placed at the corresponding moments in my life. And, to address society's ignorance and misconceptions concerning gender identity, myths are debunked and mysteries unraveled throughout the book, and background information, titled Gender 101, is provided in the appendix. The details of my life may seem unusual and unrelated to your life, but the struggle to be whole will hopefully strike a chord in your heart. We may take different paths, but we share the longing to live truthfully and authentically, to feel that we are flowing with life, to stop fighting and hiding our real selves, and to live and love openly without hesitation. The truths we must face are unique to each of us; but we must face them. Once faced, we then have the choi

About the Author

"Jody Keller" is an educator, musician, poet and naturalist. After living, loving and learning in Arizona for over 30 years, she recently relocated to where her heart and spirit can freely soar. In addition to enjoying the gifts of an authentic life, she continues to teach, write, sing and chase rainbows.