When not quite 38 years of age I suffered a mild heart attack. After a couple of months of following doctor's orders with no apparent improvement I made an enough of a nuisance of myself to be scheduled for open heart surgery, no minor procedure in those days.
So in the May of my 38 year I underwent by-pass surgery, my first cabbage or CABG, coronary arterial bypass graft.

Ten year pass and I, and the family, am living in London, England. It is home leave year. The children have already headed back to Canada to spend a couple of weeks with their friends before the parents arrive to do the tourist thing. Suddenly my energy level dropped to practically zero. A visit to the cardiologist and my second cabbage is scheduled within days. What a difference 10 years makes. Up and walking the next day instead of 2 weeks later.

Another 28 years and I wake up on the floor, unable to rise with chest pains. An alert wife called the ambulance. I was able to emphasis that the chest pain was not cardiac. A few tests and a couple of units of blood and I was admitted for more work. Bioscophy and colonoscophy confirmed tumors and though no body mentioned anything I just knew cancer - my cauliflower.

I'm now undergoing radiation and chemo therapy. As many of you know not the most pleasant situation in the world

Today I came out to my two children and myself. After 70 years of living a lie I have finally had the courage to say I'm transgendered. A weight has been lifted.

What will change - I hope nothing.
It is much too late to make life-style changes.
I hope my children know I am the same person I was before they read the letter.

Update.

Well the world has not come to an end, but then why should it?
Being spread across the vast extent of Canada, we could not have a face to face discussion, so I had to write a letter to them. The reaction has been "so what?"

I guess things could have gone either way, but in my case it just makes me wonder what would have happened if I had come out years ago. I doubt if I would ever have tried to transition after marriage and raising two wonderful children but if only I had the information before marriage.

The relief of coming out has been fantastic - now dare I tell my wife?
To be fair to the children I've got to face that one.