DEAR ABBY: I am a 13-year-old dancer, and I recently had a recital. The mothers came backstage to help their children change in the dressing rooms.
A girl my age who has two lesbian mothers was near me while I changed. It made me feel self-conscious. I'm normally not like this, but it felt awkward, to say the least. I'm not against same-sex couples, but it felt weird. Am I overreacting? -- MIDWEST DANCER
DEAR MIDWEST DANCER: I think so. Those two mothers were more interested in what was going on with their daughter than with you. If you plan to become a professional dancer -- or part of any branch of the performing arts -- you will be changing costumes under all kinds of conditions. This means you will be around straight males and females, gay people of both genders and, occasionally, trans people. It's a fact of life because separate dressing rooms may not be available.