What Did You Call Me?

I think my dad was the first person to tell me that the sound each human being likes to hear most in the world is the sound of their name. He was trying to teach me social skills. I have since heard the same thing in workshops and in the classroom. I don’t think that anyone would argue that it is important to know a person’s name and to call him or her by that name.

My mom is a school teacher. She has been teaching for over 35 years. Because of her experience with hundreds and hundreds of young children, she had very specific guidelines when she was choosing a name for her first-born.

1) She wanted a name that was decidedly feminine
2) She wanted to use the common spelling of the name
3) She did not want to be able to derive a nickname from the given name

I was given the name Jane. Because of my Mom’s thoughtful deliberation, I have never been confused for a male, and only on rare occasions have people misspelled my first name. She was not, however, able to save me from being given nicknames.

Now, I know what she was getting at…she didn’t want a Jennifer to be called Jenny her whole life or a Christina to be called Christy. She wanted me to be known by my given name, and I am. I have, however, also been blessed to have had numerous friends throughout the course of my life call upon me by other names. These are names that I have been known by, names that I would respond to over and over again. Each name brings back warm memories of the specific person who knew me by that name. Here is my list…

Jane-o
Pa-chain-o
Wink
Wink-lay
Twinkle Toes
Plain Jane
Plainer Janer
Plainer
Number 9
Janie
Mumpus
Winkel
Janie Pants
Merry Jane
Jane Lu
Banana
Nanner

(While I wouldn’t consider them nicknames, it is also worth noting that I have been called or referred to by the following: Kate, Jake, Lindsey, and Ann.)

There is something special about a nickname. There is a story behind the name and there is usually a story behind the relationship. Most of the time, it is something that makes you smile, or reminds you that you are special to someone else. It is good…and the sound of this name may be an even more desirable sound than that of a given name, when it's spoken by the right person.

After all, my dad calls me Sweetheart. I’m not sure that I can remember the last time he called me Jane…maybe when he was trying to get my attention in a crowded room? Even he knows that sometimes, in some cases, a person’s given name might not be the thing that they like to hear best. Sometimes, it is their nickname.