I was invited to a birthday party for a friend of a friend. I'd met this woman before a couple times, but I don't really know much about her... or as it turns out, her children, who were at the venue that evening, as well.

So I show up kilted because... well, I wear kilts frequently. Half an hour in, I get pulled aside by the honouree's sister. Apparently, she had spent pretty much the entire time I was there explaining to the 6yo boy why I was allowed to wear a dress and he wasn't. Y'see, he has gender confusion as well as mild autism. He insists on wearing his sister's dresses when he's at home, but he has gleaned on his own that it isn't socially acceptable so he never wears them out of the house (his family is very supportive of him and haven't tried to force him into gender roles).

So she pulls me in for reinforcements and to seal the deal. We went over all the pieces of the attire: kilt, sporran, hose, flashes... I explained to him that kilts aren't dresses... they're for men to wear, particularly those from Scotland or proud of that heritage... many warriors throughout history have worn kilts... and that it's ok for a man to wear one, even though most men (even in Scotland) don't. He asked a few questions about this magickal land called "Scotland", to determine what else is different other than trouserless men... like do they have tornadoes, or kitchens, or showers, or cows...

Sadly, I'm not sure that we really got through to him. At the end his mind started drifting away, so I don't know how much he understood. As his bedtime was approaching, his dad took him home, and that was that.

No one was upset with me that I wore the kilt... rather they complimented it and the boy's aunt said she was glad that I did wear it, as it allowed them to address a sensitive topic in a (hopefully) constructive way. Our mutual friend even suggested that they get him a kilt to compromise between wanting to wear a skirt and being socially acceptable as something a boy can wear.

Even though it turned out ok, I am still a little... hrm... I don't really know the word... shaken? I guess it'll do. I'm a little shaken by the sheer awkwardness of the situation.

I don't want to get into a "this is how she should raise her child" or anything like that... I'd wager that's a quick way to get the thread removed! But... have any of y'all be in a similar situation? If so, how'd you handle it?