When I wrote the title for this blog, it occurred to me that nobody knows what to call me because I have multiple names. It’s crazy to have to stop and think about how you are going to sign something. Should I use my legal name (that nobody knows), my nickname (that everyone knows) or my name my favorite people call me?

Maybe from now on I will say just call me Nana. I feel like saying just call me Nana is defining. All encompassing. The epitome of my being. In reality it is a big part of the person I am but it is not all of who I want to be.

Before my first grandchild was born, my daughter asked what I would like to be called. For reference, my mom was called Memaw, and my grandma was called Other Memaw. We are not that original in our family. Funny side note….when my daughter was much younger, she used to address mail to her Other Memaw and the mail carrier thought it was hysterical.

Back to the question posed by my daughter, what do you want to be called? I told my daughter I wanted to be called Nana. I had my reasons. I thought Nana would be easy for a baby to say, and to make it even sweeter, there is a song that goes Na, na, na na na, na na na na na na na. Everyone knows that song so I know it’s in your head now.

Funny thing about names. They follow you everywhere. I have a real name. A name I don’t use often. My given name as it is known in the legal world. For some reason, my mom gave me a given name, and then gave me a “nickname” that I was known for my entire life. That is until I was blessed with the name Nana. When my grandkids started calling me Nana I started realizing the name not only sounds sweet when it is spoken by your grandchild, but it also makes you realize you can be a person who can change the world for the better.

I didn’t even know I wanted to be a change maker. Then life happened and I realized that we all need to fight for social justice. I want to make sure our grandkids with ASD have every opportunity to succeed in the world.

Just call me Nana. Or Cathy. Or Shelly. Really, you can call me anything you want. Let’s just be friends and change the world together. There is room for everyone at the table.