What's in a name?

Juliet:
"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."
Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)


So then, do you think if I were any other name than Amber, would I be the same?
Do you think I would be sweet?

Ha. Probably not.

So when this semester started, one of my class professors (Women and Christianity) wanted to learn all of our 35 names and so for her and kinda everyone to get to know our name and remember it she asked us to tell our name and tell how we got our name. Oh boy. Have you heard this story? It's about as long as I am.

First of all, I was supposed to be born at the end of August and I was born in the middle of August, and they didn't know my gender until I was born. If I was a boy, I would have been the Robert E. Tyree of the group. But I wasn't. So my mom and dad say that they could not agree on my name. Lots of names that my mom liked, well it's not that my dad didn't like them, it's that he had dated someone with that name and that wouldn't be appropriate or good for me. And I'm told that it took a long time to name me. They joked they could give me a funny name: Gertrude Fayrine. Call me Gerdy Faye for short. And sometimes they still do and sometimes in High School, it would be funny to call me that.
I embraced it. I had it stamped on my yearbooks. I still sign all my artwork with a "GF" which you will have noticed if you ever took art with me or have gone to "Painting With A Twist" with me. For  a while after high school, working with an Amber everyday, I considered going by Trudy. Why not. Kinda cute right? Trudy Tyree. There are worse things to be called, or named ....but don't get me on that subject, it doesn't end well for many a person in today's world. But my mom also told me that she really liked the name Julie. And I think it's beautiful as well. But my dad had a mule named Julie and that took it out of the running, as well as the name Kate, the dog (I think blue heeler) they had when they were first married.

So a week after class starts, and I'm out to eat with the family, I retell the story of how my professor wanted to learn all of our names and how we had to tell her the story. Well, this story obviously isn't climactic as we all know my name. But there is, as always with me, a funny bit.
My dad asks if I was brave enough to tell them about my Gerdy Faye fate/option. Yes, I did and also how Mom wanted Julie but you had a mule named Julie so I couldn't be Julie. Do you see where this is going?

What? I never had a mule named Julie. OH. Ha. I just never liked that name.

What a long joke in the making.
But here I am.  Amber. Amber Dawn.
In case you didn't realize it, all of my names are nouns without being proper nouns. Amber, a color or gem, dawn, a time of the morning, and Tyree (Tyre) a (sinful) city in the bible off the Jordan River.

So if I was another name- would I still be me?
Probably not.
But I won't apologize for it ;)

~Amber