What's in a name?

My parents named me Jennifer. I am the only kid in my family that got more than a one syllable name (interesting fact.) Funny thing is I don't get called by that name very often. When I was younger, most everyone called me Jenni; my family, the people at church, the kids I went to school with, almost everyone. Once I left home to go to college, I wanted to put my younger self behind me, so I started to call myself Jennifer. Nobody knew me as Jenni anymore. As I got to know people at college, I became Jenn. After college I found a job as an athletic trainer at a high school. Again I introduced myself as Jennifer, but before too long, everyone started calling me Jenn. So I'm back here in my hometown working in a high school, but instead of calling me Jenni, everyone now calls me Jenn. I never really sat down and thought about it until today, when one of the kids at school called me Jenni. I don't know why, but it seemed so strange for him to call me Jenni. It felt like he was calling me "sweetie" or "honey" instead of Jenni. I don't know, I guess it's sort of hard to explain. It's been so long since I've been called Jenni and the people that called me that were the people that knew me better than anyone else. So now when someone calls me Jenni, it's like an endearing little nickname, almost too familiar for just anyone to call me. I suppose that's why it seemed so strange when this kid at school called me that. It must have shown on my face because he looked at me and said, "is that all right, if I call you Jenni or do you prefer Jenn?" So as I've been sitting here thinking about it, I've decided that yes, I like being called Jenni. Maybe it's because now that I'm actually getting older I want to feel younger:0), or maybe it's just because it makes me feel more loved. As a last little sidenote some people do call me Jennifer, funny that those people happen to be my very best friends!

A Christmas to Remember

So I wasn't really that excited to go to Puerto Rico for Christmas this year. My brother that is living here in Puerto Rico is moving back to Idaho in a week, and I didn't really know what to expect. All I knew is that there would be no snow, no sitting by the fire, no sledding, no big family gathering. I was worried that it wouldn't really feel like Christmas. Everyone told me I was crazy, who would give up two weeks of tropical beaches for an Idaho snow storm?! Well definitely not me, because here I am in Puerto Rico. Now I'm getting ready to head back to Idaho, back to snow and icy roads and I've been reflecting on my experiences here in Puerto Rico.
I am sad to be leaving, I mean I love going to the beach and seeing new places, and people and cultures. I've had a wonderful time here, but in truth I am happy to go back to Idaho too. The big question, did it feel like Christmas? Well being truthful, no it didn't. Christmas day seemed to pass like any other day here. We tried to do all the regular Christmas activites, but come on would you really feel like it's Christmas as you sat on a sandy tropical beach? I had fun, but no, it didn't feel like Christmas to me. I felt like we kinda skipped over Christmas. Sad, but I'm ok with that. I wouldn't have traded the experience for anything. We took a trip to Flemenco Beach yesterday on the island of Culebra. I found a quiet spot and just sat and watched the waves. The water was so blue, it reminded me of Hawaii. There were a lot of people there, but the beach was so huge I didn't feel crowed at all. It was so peaceful and beautiful, I wished that Idaho had a tropical island!
Anyways I have loved this trip and I'm so thankful I was able to come here to Puerto Rico. Unfortunatly now I'm ready to see more of the world!! I need more money!