In Identity Impact, Dina Proto, RN outlines the clinical connection between the negation of a child's identity and certain health complications. Drawing from her twenty years as a nurse - working in the ER, hospice, and everything in between - she challenges us to examine this critical question: What is the potential fall out when a child's identity doesn't fit neatly into society's box? Proto believes that while we all struggle through the stages of growth, those along the LGBTQ continuum experience an additional layer of identity development, as well as stages of grief, that impact their coping mechanisms. She asserts that the very people in our lives trained to mold and shape us into adults are, in fact, ill-prepared to guide the development of those within the LGBTQ community due to a lack of understanding, relevant research, and mandated training. Proto believes that by opening up the conversation around gender identity we can stop the cycle of treating health complications only after they occur, and start providing education to prevent them. ------- As I cultivated the information in this book, I became acutely aware that identity doesn't just happen one day. Finding one's identity is a journey; a journey that is impacted by the people and the experiences around us. Like my journey to becoming an author and writing this book. This book was written in an effort to help others understand the impact that identity can have on each of our lives, and the years in which that identity formation takes place. Throughout that process, time and again my mind's eye went to a distant memory. That memory was of my 5 year old self and the day my parents and I had just moved in to a house on Hollow Road. I remember distinctly standing at a stop sign two houses down at the intersection of Hollow and Hope . That was the intersection where I was to meet two sisters. At the age of 5, I had no idea the impact that would make on my life. Nor did they. Fast forward more than 40 years, when it was time to choose a cover. I was faced with determining what message I wanted to convey, how would that image in particular convey the impact of the information contained inside? What image did I want people to envision when they held this book in their hand and why was image so important? The truth is, it's important because it's real. It's real in the sense that the intersection of Hope and Hollow, really does exist both literally and figuratively. And that oak tree, it's really there too. So too, is the impact that identity has on each of us, whether it impacts us personally, professionally, physically or emotionally. Perception is the reality for each of us. That intersection depicts the choice in my own life to choose to be full of Hope rather than continuing to be Hollow. And, I personally believe that not everyone is given the scenic overlooks and perspective I've been given to see that intersection in their own lives. Sometimes we need the person who has taken the journey before us to pave the way. It is my hope that I can be that for others. So how did I get that photograph you ask? I've been told that it's a rarity to have childhood friends one remains close with throughout their life. And yet, that is my reality. I can thank Sherri Stupak for answering the call of an old childhood friend, for taking the time to see my vision, and for helping me to share a piece of my identity ~ thank you for being the eyes at my intersection and helping others to see what it looks like when you turn the corner from Hollow to Hope. ~Dina