“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
–William Shakespeare, “Romeo and Juliet”
I must admit, Shakespeare challenged me in school. At one point, I would have stood a better shot if he had challenged me to a duel! It wasn’t that his body of work wasn’t interesting or engaging, but more so the difficulty I encountered just trying to understand what the heck he was saying. But once I got it, I got it…and I really liked it, at times downright enjoying it. Shakespeare was all right! Except for when he was wrong. Imagine my frustration when I finally got it only to later discover Shakespeare didn’t get it. So, I actually didn’t get what I got when I got what I thought I got. Fortunately, it wasn’t long after “getting it”, that I learned the truth and came to understand Shakespeare’s famously quoted, well-known line from Romeo and Juliet from a completely different perspective!
Let’s begin with the original understanding that I thought “I got”. The “What’s in a name” part was pretty self-explanatory. Interpreting “ that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet” simply meant (yeah, right) that no matter what you call the rose – be it a person, place, or thing, the rose is a rose is a rose and therefore would still smell sweet. Yay! That was easy!
And so it was, until it wasn’t. Bring on the Horse Mackerel. Ever heard of it? I had never heard of it before, but once I did, I knew that what I thought I knew, I didn’t really know. Turns out, in the event that you didn’t already know, horse mackerel is also known as Tuna fish. You may have heard it tastily referred to as “Chicken of the Sea” or “Starkist”. Yum! Horse Mackerel? Not so much! I mean, really. How about a horse mackerel sandwich or salad…or horse mackerel casserole…or simply grilled horse mackerel? Not very appetizing. Evidently, tuna became a much more delectable dish (and fish) when “Horse Mackerel” was removed from the label. I guess horse mackerel conjures up somewhat different images and as a result, sales, shall we say, slumped. But an opportunity to taste test “chicken of the sea” – well now, that’s a horse of a different color (so to speak)!
So, what is in a name? Clearly, more than what Juliet conveyed to Romeo. How about your name?
Do you know the story of your name?
My name reflects the country that I was born in. Désirée is French and means desire or desired one. I was named after Désirée Clary, a one-time fiancée to Napoleon Bonaparte. Désirée was presented to Napoleon (Wiki’s wording, not mine), to whom she became engaged but the engagement was broken off when Napoleon (a.k.a. philanderer) became involved with and later married Josephine de Beauharnais . Désirée Clary would later become Queen of Sweden and Norway. (Désirée was clearly destined for royalty). When her husband died, Désirée desired to return to France but her fear of sea travel prevailed. It’s said that after she became a widow, she became more and more eccentric and would sleep during the day and wander the halls of the castle with a lit candle at night.
Other stories tell of people being awakened by the carriage Désirée drove through the streets at night. Sometimes the carriage stopped for a period of time and Desiree would sleep and then continue on her way. She drove the carriage in circles (a feel all too familiar) around the royal palace, also known as “Kring Kring”, meaning round and round – one of the few Swedish words Désirée learned (and the only one I now know). On the last day of her life, she entered her box at the Royal Swedish Opera. She died in Stockholm on December 17, 1860.1
When I was growing up, everyone called me Desi. In fact, some people had no idea that there was anything more to my name. Anyone who saw my full name in print hacked it to pieces trying to pronounce it. Even I envisioned being “Desi” for the rest of my life. That was until I was about 14 years old and a woman at the summer work program I was involved in asked me (phrased as a statement as opposed to a question) if I intended to be called “Desi” once I got older. Well, yeah, that’s my name. But when I left home a young woman, I felt I needed a more “mature” name as conveyed by the woman in the summer work program. I then became Désirée . When I started working, I became “Des” by default.
There’s something to be said for “Desi”. Although years have passed since anyone other than my family has routinely referred to me as Desi, I am amazed whenever someone other than the people I grew up with call me that. When I hear “Desi”, for a brief moment I am transported back in time to years gone by and am again among my childhood friends. “Desi” says you know me from way back and when I hear it, I can’t help but smile.
So, what is in a name? If you don’t already know and you have the means to find out, discover how you came to be named. There’s a story waiting and that story could be more telling than you ever imagined!
See You Next Wednesday! 
OXOXOXO
growgratitude.com 