From our first hug, I could tell how much warmth and wisdom Sandra has carried with her throughout her life. After placing our coffee orders and soon over the course of a few hours, I learned where all her patience for herself and loved ones came from. Beginning her transition at age 15 and first surgery at 21, Sandra has had to build her own support system from the ground up her entire life. Only recently at the age of 37, her own father was able to accept her as herself.
She detailed different moments and relationships she was forced to walk away from in the name of her identity. Leaving the Philippines to live and work in Paris, she tells me that she one day hopes to have her legal documentation match her physical appearance– “I want to die as a woman”.
