Name Calling

What’s in a name? When a friend introduces me to someone new I’m asked – ‘what do you like to be called?’. Well, I’ve answered to a number over the years, ranging from ‘Big Bird’ to ‘Nangleburger’ (don’t ask!), and still the name my family calls me is different from the one my friends who have known me for decades use. I haven’t done anything risky to have garnered a nickname – I am not ‘The Birdwoman of Worthing’, and the only reason I was ‘The Jolly Green Giant’ at school was because I was always first in the queue for school dinners. And I’m tall. Oh yes, that’s got a
lot of name mileage. Welcome to ‘Big Bird’, ‘Mummy Long Legs’ and ‘The BFG’.
I’m still not sure what I like to be called though.
No longer will the retort: “I don’t mind so long as it’s not ‘mug’!” do. Should we be able to adopt new names partway through our lives? I know a couple of friends who have done just that, but I’m not sure if I know what my chosen name would then become either. There are so many words… I couldn’t even confidently name a hamster.
So ‘Nangle’ will have to do. It’s grown on me. And if you say it lots you sound like a low-flying light aircraft!