What's in a name? #reverb10

December 23 New name. Let's meet again, for the first time. If you could introduce yourself to strangers by another name for just one day, what would it be and why? (prompt by @beccawilcott)

I am a firm believer that a name makes up who a person becomes.  Where Shakespeare says "What's in a name?  A rose by any other name would smell as sweet," I'm not entirely sure about that.  I wonder if it wasn't called a stink weed that it would have changed how we think about smells.

For me, I was to have many other names in my life.  If I was a boy, I was to be Ryan.  If I was a girl, the plan was to call me Megan.  It was a good Irish name and my parents loved it.  Now, I think I would be a much different person if I was Megan.  Maybe life would have been different.

Certainly I would not have had to go through my life with the constant conversation of "Yes, Bronwyn is really my name."  I would not have had to discover the meaning of my name and been mortified numerous times when it is brought up in public.

However, there are Megan's everywhere.  Here a Megan, there a Meghan, everywhere a Meaghan, Megen.  There are very few Bronwyn's.  One who came along after me (I maintain she stole it), one who came before me, and a few others here and there.

I love being the only one of me.  I love being unique without actually having to work at it.

So, I wouldn't want to have any other name.  But I wouldn't mind if all the other Bronwyn's did.