I Went to Church in a Dress

7/15/2023

I dropped one of my kids off for a four-hour academic test on Saturday morning. Then I put on a dress, went to breakfast, and attended a class and part of a church service at a Seventh Day Adventist church. I wore my gray striped dress, a burgundy cardigan, and black flats. Almost everyone acted like I was dressed normally. I also made a friend.

Breakfast

I dropped off my son and changed into my outfit. (I never wear wigs or makeup. I am just a guy who wears dresses, etc..) My first stop was a diner for breakfast. I parked close to the entrance. I looked in the large windows before approaching the door. There were not many people that I could see. I walked in and did not see a hostess. I was not going to stand there forever. I am always very self-conscious when I start a crossdressed outing. So, I walked into the dining area and walked past a booth with a couple in it and sat in the adjacent booth. I did not look to see if they saw my outfit, but I assume that both of them did. I never noticed them pay me any unusual attention after that. There were two other couples seated along the other wall. They did not appear to notice me.

To clarify, the couple seated near me were older than me. The couple nearer to the door were the young couple. The third couple was the couple in which the woman wore a dress. Later, a fourth couple arrived, but they never looked in my direction. That is how I will identify the other customers going forward.

In this picture, you can see the woman in the dress in the corner.
The couple in the booth on the right are the fourth couple.

A man in the kitchen looked through the window and saw me sitting at my table. He came out and brought me a menu and took my drink order. He never acted like he noticed my outfit, but if he did, he did not care. He took my order, and then brought my food. I ate a small breakfast of just two scrambled eggs. It was prepared quickly and I ate it quickly. At one point, the woman in the corner table walked to the bathroom. She was wearing a dress. I was happy that I was not the only person in a dress. When she returned, she smiled warmly at me and said, “Hi.”

My server was good, he filled my water cup and I kept drinking (foreshadowing). When my server brought my check, I asked him to take my picture.

The older couple finished up and left. Eventually, my server brought me my ticket. The young couple got up and went to pay. I got up and got in line behind them. The server had to find someone who could run the cash register. While we waited, several families came into the restaurant. They had to walk past me to be seated.

While I was standing, I heard a woman’s voice behind me. I looked to find the woman in the dress. She was looking away and talking to herself or the Universe about whatever it was. She saw me, smiled, and said, “Is this the line?” or something like that. Her husband joined her. I paid my bill, stepped to the side, and started putting away the change. The woman in the dress handed her ticket to the cashier. When I turned to leave, she said, “Good-bye,” and smiled again.

Arriving at Church

Next, I drove to the church. Their website said that they had “Sabbath School”. This is what they call it in a Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) church. SDA churches meet on Saturdays. I was 25 minutes early. There were two cars in the parking lot. It looked like they no longer had Sabbath School. I visited this church once before and had a similar “Are they open?” experience. Last time, there was a small group for Sabbath School. I wondered if they had discontinued having it. I sat in my car and waited for signs of life.

Entering the Church and Class

Eventually, a woman in an electric wheel chair rolled past me. I opened my window and asked her if they were having Sabbath School. She said yes. I got out of my car. She was smiley and friendly. She greeted me properly. She never reacted to my outfit. I asked her for her name and I told her mine. I will call her “Kay”. The two of us went in together. In the classroom, there were three tables in U-formation. There was a woman close to my age in a chair at a table, and an elderly man in the front of the room. Kay introduced me by name to the others. They shook my hand and greeted me. Neither of them acted like my outfit was at all unusual. The never glanced at it that I ever saw.

Kay parked her chair near a power outlet in order to charge her chair during class. She stood up and sat in a chair at a table near her. I sat at a table facing the teacher. He started teaching. If I may be honest, it was kind of rough. He was mostly reading the literature to us. He added some commentary. He was nice and he was sincere. At one point, he went on a political rant. The class went on and on for about an hour. It was kind of horrible. There was only a little interaction. I contributed when appropriate. I became very impatient.

Some people arrived and started putting out refreshments on a table by the kitchen. A man joined our class. Still the class kept going on and on. I was regretting being there. The problem was that the delivery was not pleasant. I see why there were only two-to-three students. However, I also impatient because I had to go to the restroom very badly. Finally, it ended.

Kay is in the corner of this picture

Refreshments Time

I walked toward Kay, and she told me to get some refreshments. Instead, I excused myself. I walked into the hallway and a woman and a ~13-year-old girl were there talking. They looked at me while they continued talking. I walked to the restroom entrance and glanced back. They were still watching me. (I wondered if they were watching to see which one I would go into.) When I came out of the men’s restroom and returned to the classroom. There were six new women and girls in the room. They looked at me. A couple of the adults greeted me. Only one woman seemed to notice my outfit. No one else reacted as though I was dressed oddly. I asked Kay if I could join her at her table. We sat and talked. I did not want to walk past the people to get food.

Kay and I had a pleasant short conversation. Then, that guy who talked to me too long on my previous visit arrived. Once again, he started talking too long and pushing SDA literature on me. He really should try starting with “Hi, my name is…” He would not leave. When it was time for church, I got up and excused myself.

Worship Service

I sat near the back because I was only going to be able to stay for one or two songs. I sat alone with no one talking to me. Then, from behind, Kay walked up. (She did not need the wheelchair. She said that she is not strong enough to take long walks.) She invited herself to sit by me. We sat and talked for the next five minutes.

A woman walked up and spoke to us. She was the pastor’s wife. She asked Kay if she would be willing to read the Bible during the service, but Kay declined. (She did not ask me if I would do it.) I asked Kay if I could take a selfie with her. She agreed. Then, the service started. Kay and I stood together and sang. After the song, we sat and whispered. I told her, “I am going to the picture on my blog where I write about my experiences when I am out dressed pretty. I will blur out your face.” She said, “You don’t have to do that.” Just before I left, I told her, “Thank you very, very, very much for being so nice to me.”

After I wrote this article, I started editing my pictures and was horrified to discover
that this is the only picture I have from the church service.
My selfie with Kay was not on the camera.
I did not check to see that it was successfully made. 😦

Thrift Store Donation

I went to a thrift store to donate some of my pretty clothes that I cleaned out. There were several people there dropping off stuff. I was not sure if I wanted to get out of my car. I decided to be brave and I got out, retrieved my stuff from the trunk, and walked toward the drop-off bins. A young, muscular, manly guy walked up and reached out to take my stuff. I said, “It is just some clothes.” He perkily said, “Thank you, buddy!” and smiled and took it. I thanked him and I walked away. Again, he acted like everyone wears dresses.

Conclusion

Only one woman looked at my outfit and stuttered. Immediately, she recovered and reached out to greet me. The young girls took a look at me before ignoring me.

Kay, however, she wins an award for being the most awesome person. She was friendly, and she spent time with me. She made me feel valuable. I want to be more like Kay! I did not feel like I was her project. She just was happy to know me. She sat by me to make me feel welcome. She left her oxygen bottle behind because I was THAT important to her. I’m loving me some Kay right now. 🙂