This Is How It Always Is: Part I: Invention Summary & Analysis

Penn and Rosie schedule a meeting at the school near the end of the fall term. They plan exactly what to tell the school about Claude, and it basically boils down to his happiness. They support whatever makes Claude happy, including dresses. The night before the meeting as Penn and Rosie go over their plans again, Roo and Ben come downstairs. They are “staging an invention,” Roo says. “Intervention, you idiot,” Ben corrects. Whatever, Roo says, they just don’t want Claude wearing a dress to school. Kids are mean, Ben adds, and Claude is going to get beat up.

The dresses are “weird,” Roo says, and “gay.” Penn asks what’s wrong with being gay, and Ben says nothing, but they should teach Claude some kung fu or something before they turn him loose in the world as gay. Penn points out that they are all weird. Roo plays football and the flute, and Ben skips grades because he makes up extra homework for himself in his spare time. We’re all weird, Penn says again, and Rosie reminds them that they can’t tell their brother who to be, all they can do is support who he is.

The next day, Rosie and Penn arrive at the school for their meeting. They are prepared to meet only with Dwight Harmon, but Miss Appleton is there along with Victoria Revels, a representative from the school district. Victoria Revels immediately asks if Claude will be changing his name, and Penn says no, somewhat confused. They don’t need to worry about pronouns then, she says, moving right along. Dwight can tell Penn and Rosie are nervous, so he tells them to relax. They handle kids with special needs all the time, and Claude isn’t their first transgender student. Claude just wants to wear a dress, Rosie says, they haven’t put any labels on him. That’s fine, Dwight says, but as far as the school is concerned, any boy who wears a dress is considered transgender for paperwork purposes.

Victoria Revels continues. Claude will have to use the bathroom in the nurse’s office, she says. They can’t allow him to use the girls’ bathroom, and the boys’ bathroom might make him uncomfortable, so the nurse’s office is his only choice. Miss Appleton says Rosie and Penn should prepare Claude for lots of questions. Children are naturally curious and will want to know why he is wearing a dress, and he should always tell them the truth. Penn interrupts. Claude doesn’t know why he wants to wear a dress, so the truth might be difficult. Dwight says the right answers will come in time, and Victoria Revels agrees. The important thing is that Claude must use the bathroom in the nurse’s office, she says. Sure, Rosie says sarcastically, and no peanut butter. “Or jelly you’ve dipped your peanut butter knife into,” Miss Appleton says seriously.

On the first day of school after Christmas break, Claude comes downstairs wearing a nice casual denim skirt and a pink sweater. Rosie wants to go to school with him, but Claude has decided that he wants Penn to go and sit in the back, so that’s exactly what Penn does. As the kids arrive, Miss Appleton sits them in a circle and says that many exciting things happened during break. Susan lost a tooth, Miss Appleton says of one of the students, and Carrie has a new haircut. Claude, Miss Appleton says, has decided to be a “fairy girl.” She asks if anyone has questions, and the students begin to ask questions. Do Claude’s tights itch, they ask, and does he plan on growing out his hair? Claude says no, his tights don’t itch, but he hasn’t really thought much about his hair.

At lunch time, Penn asks Claude if he is okay, and Claude says he is. The next morning, Claude comes downstairs and asks how long it will take to grow his hair down to his butt. He is wearing a purple jumper with rainbow stripped tights, and Rosie knows he is doing just fine with his new wardrobe.