Naming Names

Hi, my name is…

When the Ghost wanted to ensure that I knew how he felt, he would use my name. He would say, "Come on, Alexis", or, "Yes, Alexis." The best though? "Good night, Alexis."

It will sound strange, but very few people actually refer to me by name. Almost everyone I have ever known has refuted this fact, but I tend to notice it more than all of you do, shockingly (that was a tad sarcastic). My parents alternate between honey, sweetie (Dad's favourite), and sweetheart. It's rare to hear them say it: them most of all.

My friends use variations of my name: Lex, Lax, and Alicia's hilarious retort (because it's always said as an exclamation), "A-LEX!" Chantal used to call me Alessis, and Shalaina tells her children she's, "on the phone with A--le--ck--sis." It's hardly the same. My Nonna uses my name all the time, but her version of it is so heavily accented that it loses its poignant effect.

So it may now come as no surprise that when I do hear my name in full, pronounced the way I know it to be said (and not like a Korean, for instance), I pay very close attention. So much so that I don't really like to talk to my new neighbour Chad because he insists on using my full name. It feels too intimate somehow.

I brought this to Matt's attention and he, like the rest of you, was shocked. He made it a point to say, "Good night, Alexis" when I left his house and it helped me recollect quite fondly.

It's really the smallest things that bring memories flooding back, isn't it?

Have a good night, ____(insert full name here)____.