Thursday, March 6, 2008

What's in a Name?

I love letters. I could freehand personalized monograms for hours and hours on end. There is something about letters that my brain (and hand) finds so soothing. I'm sure that it has a lot to do with letters being symbols (yep, I love, love, love symbols & patterns - especially repetative patters and symetrical symbols) and that you can change the expression of the symbol by shifting the script/style of the letter. "M" has always been a great letter for me ... first letter of my first name, the month I was born, and the following fantabulous words ... mama, mother, magic, mystery, muse, music, moon, mist, myth, mirth, move, maze, maize (hehe, I like corn-knee stuff), mitten, mouse, mastery, maiden, moth, monolithic, mercurial, Matisse, Monet, Moore, marigold, mandolin, magnolia, macrame, malochite (sigh), macadamia (yum), mud, Mabel ... uh, I could go on and on, but I will refrain ... all this leads into a thank you to Monica for her fun post "Celebrate your name by throwing it a party" ...

... You see, I haven't been making anything for the last few days. Typical - I tend to feast or famine. It's not that I don't want to make/draw/paint/create anything, it's just that I'm ... dry. The feeble attempts have been just that - pretty feeble. I'm not good with that. Not good with trying to force something ... it's like, when I hold a pen in hand my strokes aren't just flowing, but stagnant or strained. It feels cramped ... that doesn't quite capture it, but I am at a loss for a better word ... so, I've been spending a few days checking out other peoples blogs which leads me back to Monica and that fun post ...

I decided to check out the meaning of my name .... drumroll, please

Michelle

ORIGIN: Hebrew
MEANING: Who resembles God


The French feminine form of Michael that debuted on the popularity chart in 1938 and has been listed among the top 100 since 1954. The name spent nine years at No. 5 after the release of the famed 1965 Beatles' song "Michelle" known for its bilingual lyrics.

I have been known to tell people that I was named after above mentioned Beatles song (I have always, always liked the Beatles, thank you ... plus, how can you not like hearing your name and then, "I love you, I love you, I love you ..."?) ... alas, this is not really true. My brother's first girlfriend was a pretty little strawberry blond with a serious lisp (they were 5) and her name was Michelle. My mom said she just liked the name ... want the better part of the story? My middle name is Dawn ... I have no issues there - daybreak is pretty spectacular - but, get this ... Dawn was the name of the bassett hound that lived next door ... such is life, eh? :)

Just the same, I don't think I'd trade it ... even for all the Sharpies in all the lands.

3 comments:

Janet said...

Both of my children have the initials MMM! Even after my daughter married it was still MMM. She married a man whose last name begins with M!

I love your monogram....that is so cool.

michelle said...

I am a Michelle too and I love that monogram above. It would make an absolutely GORGEOUS tattoo. (I am thinking about getting another!) From one Michelle to another have a great weekend.

Lea said...

You are a sharpie wizard...

This M is fantastic!!!