she was then

as a child i thought i was the only one who has the longest name. that proved to be true in my own theory whenever i have to practice writing my complete name in a paper (with blue and red alternate lines as my guide), i have to be the last one to say, "i'm through ma'am." then my teacher will have her red ballpoint pen checked my work. i still have to get five stars though because it can be a very tiring work for a six year old girl to repeatedly write her names in 20 big letters.

since i've got three names, my mom and dad decided to call me by my third name. it is a long name but it is definitely the name i used since highschool. i use it whenever i have exams, quizzes or anything that needed less time to write. but of course, in legal documents, real name has to be written in bold letters.

but during my junior high, my bestfriend gave me a nickname. since then everyone called me by my nick. that was a good thing, new nick, new name, new me. i instantly recognizes whenever someone call me by my real name that he/she is someone i met before my junior high. they may be from my neighborhood, a relative or a childhood friend. and if someone calls me by my nick, i know that he/she is someone i met during or after my junior high.

then i go to college, same nick, same name. i still get to asked what is my real name and still have the same impression of having a long name. but it all changed when i met my when thesis adviser. his first child's name consists of 14 names and i am not kidding. really, 14 first names. so i guess, it negated my own theory that i have the longest name when i was child. i wonder how did it go with his child?