In the old days, before the world became an enlightened place, people used to worry about what other people might think.. The opinions of the  neighbours needed to be considered. Reputation was key. Then we discovered that we are all, in our different ways, as bad, mad, irrational, unreasonable, hypocritical and inconsistent as each other.   Don't apologize for what you're not. Be proud of what you are and even more proud of what you are about to become.