1984 - Memories

My first clear memory was having a conversation in the living room of our old apartment - before we bought the house my parent's still live in now. The year would have been approximately 1984. I was sitting on the couch having a very serious conversation with my father, as only a four-year-old could. I wanted to change my first name - I didn't like it.

Wendy wasn't cool enough, wasn't serious enough, wasn't popular enough. My father, ever the level-headed man that he is, suggested I change it to Michele, my middle name. I contemplated this and decided it MAY be the way to go. But since my aunt went by the same name, wouldn't that be confusing? He said I could go by "Mich" (which rhymes with 'fish') to make myself unique. I liked this for a few minutes til I thought of ... being called fish. After a few minutes, he suggested I just keep it simple and just go by Wendy - I agreed. (Wow, he was so smart!)

You see - my father had named me after his favorite song - Wendy by the Beach Boys. He knew before he even married my mother that if he ever had a daughter - she would be named after it. I love my father for entertaining my four-year-old aspirations to change my name --- only to loop me around and have me believe it was my idea not to change it afterall. HA!