In 2010, a 58-year-old priest and father of three Åke Roxberg came out as Ann-Christine and since then has lived as a woman. This is his daughter Esther's story of what happens when you suddenly have a father named Ann-Christine. No one was prepared for the hobby-making priest and father of three, Åke Roxberg, to change his life, least of all the family.
Ester Roxberg writes about losing a parent, who still remains in a different guise. She tries to understand and accept, hides her wrath, puts puzzles with her recollections. She remembers her childhood as the priest's youngest and wild daughter and her upbringing in Zimbabwe and Småland during a time when the secret was still hidden.
Memories that now have to be reconsidered on the way to the new, which no one knows how it will turn out. "Hey, I'd like to book church for our son's baptism. - Yes, we'll sort that out. "But my father is a priest and we want him to be baptized. - Yes, okay, what's his name? - Ann-Christine Roxberg. - Oh, I thought you said your dad. -Yes. - ... Oh well."
In 2014 I had a chance to talk with Ann-Christine, and this is what she told me about the most challenging part of her transition: "Meeting and dealing with the fear of others. And of course, telling my three grown-up daughters. They needed their process also; it took time and it was tough for all of us. Today I'm proud to say that I have a truly good relationship with them all and their families. They have fully embraced me as Ann-Christine and that is a joy beyond telling."
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