My grandfather’s middle name was Alexander and my grandmother’s
maiden name was Oliver. So I bet you can guess what my name would have been, had
I been born a boy--yes, Alexander Oliver. However, I am a girl, the second daughter
of my parents. Apparently there was a lot of creativity used in coming up with
a girl’s name upon my birth, because I am Olivia Alexandra instead of Alexander
Oliver. I do feel like my name defines me because it is part of my identity. It
is part of what makes me who I am.
I do have a nickname which is “Livvy.” However, really only
my family calls me by my nickname, but so do all the people who knew me in
elementary school because they heard my parents call me by it. It is funny
that I can tell who knew me when by what they call me, “Olivia” or “Livvy."
My last name is a struggle. It’s “Gilleland.” It is Irish
and comes from my father’s side. This name causes problems for me because it is
hard for everyone to spell and to say. First let’s talk about how to spell it.
My mom always tells people that they just have to remember that the vowels are
in reverse alphabetical order, but really, all you have to do is put an “e” in
the middle of “gill” and “land.” It is always hard whenever anyone asks my last
name and then has to write it. I don’t even let them try; I just start spelling
it right after I say it. Even when I am doing something normal like shopping,
and the cashier asks for my email address (which has my last name in it), I am
met with a blank stare after I say it.
There is also the struggle of people attempting to pronounce my
last name. The correct ways to say it are “Gil-uh-land” or “Gil-ih-land,” and those
are basically the same thing, and so both are acceptable. I do not know why it is
so hard for people to pronounce. It isn’t
like my last name is spelled really differently than it’s said, like “Quinoa”
is. In case you are thinking, “Isn’t Quinoa pronounced ‘kin-oh-uh’?” The answer is no; here is a picture for some
help:
Sometimes the attempts of people trying to say my name are
actually pretty funny. One of the worst tries I’ve ever heard is “Gilligan”
(and I’ve heard it more than once). What happened? Did they just give up after
the first four letters? Once when I was at a track meet, the announcer said: “In
second place, in the pole vault, Oh-liv-eye-uh Gill-yard.” Apparently the
anxiety caused by thinking about saying my last name, made the announcer
incapable of pronouncing “Olivia” as well…but the absolute worst I’ve ever
heard is “Galileo.” Really? Galileo? That isn’t even remotely close.
Even with the struggles of my last name, I feel like my last
name also is part of my identity. I like my unusual name, and I’ve only met one
other person with it: a cashier in a store in Virginia who noticed my name when
I paid. We’re probably related since nobody else has this name spelled with an “e”
in the middle. I have met more than one “Gilliland” though, but not many. I
like having a unique last name, because I feel it helps make me be unique as
well. However, even with that said, I think I will change my name when I am
married (unless, of course, my husband has an extremely strange name) because my
last name will no longer define just me, it will define my family. Also it
would be nice if he has an easier name to spell and pronounce.
My name is important to me as an individual; however, it is less
important when I am part of a team. The time when I am an individual and a part
of a whole at the same time is when I am competing in gymnastics. Gymnastics is
thought of as an individual sport, and in a way it is. Each gymnast competes separately
instead of with a team working together as in football or soccer. So, when I am
competing, I am an individual. I compete by myself and receive an individual
score and place on the podium. However, gymnastics is also a team sport. Each
gymnast’s scores go to a team total which means that the team does actually
have to work together, just not in the typical way. When my team wins a
competition, it is not about me, it is about the work everyone. However,
sometimes this can pose a problem. In gymnastics, there is an individual
competition as well as a team competition. Each individual can earn gold,
silver, or bronze in an event, and also the team can earn gold, silver, or bronze.
So, do you get excited when a teammate does better? It will put you at a
disadvantage for the individual competition, but at an advantage for the team competition.
This is the dilemma everyone has to face. Which is more important? Look at the
benefits of team sports here.
