Katelin/Caleb

Hello, reader. Last week, we looked at the Ancient Greek story of Caenis/Caeneus. This week, I'm putting a modern spin on it. Sorry. No gods or goddesses in this one.

The ocean gives and takes away, but not always in ways we expect.

Katelin floated on the water, letting the waves move her back toward shore. She loved swimming. Nothing mattered when she floated on the ocean like now. It was peaceful and she could almost forget how wrong she felt in her skin. Then the waves changed and Katelin found herself underwater.

She opened her eyes, but she was disoriented and it was hard to tell which way was up. It was even more difficult with the ocean slamming her body around. Katelin tried to calm down and let herself float upward, but there was no up. There was just the violent ocean, trying to take something from her. She closed her eyes.

Then Katelin started coughing, drawing sweet air into her lungs and realized she was on land. A woman she didn't know was leaning over her. "Are you all right?" the woman asked. Katelin realized this woman was a lifeguard.

Katelin nodded and tried to sit up. The lifeguard gently pushed her back down. "The ambulance will be here soon."

"Ambulance?" Katelin croaked out. "I'm fine."

The ambulance got there before Katelin could argue much more. As one of the EMTs pointed out to her, she almost died.

So, Katelin's parents met them at the hospital and Katelin went through a few tests. All Katelin could think about was how she almost died. And how at least whatever was wrong with her would go away if she had drowned.

But Katelin didn't want to give up. Life was too short to feel like this. So, Katelin began trying to figure out what was wrong. She wore clothes that didn't fit so tightly and got a pixie cut for her hair. But it didn't really click into place until a cashier called her "young man". And it felt right.

Katelin began by looking at names. She didn't really know where she was going with this until she saw the name Caleb. She said it out loud. "Nice to meet you. My name's Caleb." It felt so right that Caleb started to cry. That was his name now.

It was easier than he thought coming out to his parents. "Sweetie, we know you've been unhappy and if it makes you happy to be Caleb, then we're here for that," his mom said.

His dad nodded. "I guess I get a son after all," he joked. Then Caleb's dad pulled him in for a quick hug. Just like he would give to any other guy.

Before, anything the other kids said at school would cut right to the heart. Now the teasing got worse from some, but Caleb finally liked himself. And the people who mattered liked him too. As time went by, Caleb grew a thicker skin. Their words couldn't hurt him. anymore.

It was a long road ahead, but at least now Caleb knew he was on the right road. He felt so light and free. Just like a golden bird in the sky.