"Tis but thy name that is my enemy
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague
What's Montague? it is nor hand, nor foot,
Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for that name which is no part of thee
Take all myself."
I remember reading these words in Shakespeare's famous play Romeo and Juliet. He tried to capture the moment when a young woman struggles to be with the young man she loves, but must face one major obstacle, his name. Today, five centuries after Shakespeare's play, I find myself asking a similar question, "What's in a name?" Given to me at birth, it has become a means in society to identify who I am and where I'm from. Nevertheless, does my name really reflect and affect the person I am? Isabelle was the lyric written by my parents and became the tune I had to learn how to carry.
Les heures près de toi Fuient comme des secondes Les journées loin de toi Ressemblent à des années Qui donnent à mon amour Un goût de fin du monde Elles troublent mon corps Autant que ma pensée
Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle mon amour
Tu vis dans la lumière Et moi dans les coins sombres Car tu te meurs de vivre Et je me meurs d'amour Je me contenterais De caresser ton ombre Si tu voulais m'offrir Ton destin pour toujours
Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle mon amour
I remember the melancholy in the voice of the singer and I get nostalgic every time. The song "Isabelle," written and sung by the French singer Charles Aznavour, was a favorite of my parents and they proudly named me in its honor. "It reminds us of our teenage years," they would say, having owned all the singer's records and CDs. They would joyously sing along, repeatedly screaming out my name. I wondered if they did it to bother me or because they genuinely enjoyed the song, but whatever it was, I was utterly humiliated each time I heard it. The singer sounded like someone longing and crying for me as though I did something terrible to him. The mood, lyrics and popularity of "Isabelle" would give me chills down my spine; I was able to recognize it instantly and tried to avoid listening to it in public. Growing up, it didn't help that the local radio stations would have the Aznavour song on instant replay, making it a perfect excuse for students to tease me at school. In the hallways I would hear people yelling out "Isabelle, Isabelle, Isabelle." Others made up creative nicknames such as Isaboom, Tibebel, Bebel, Isuzu Trooper (after the car) and the list goes on. In Haiti, most parents name their children after religious figures in the New Testament such as John, Simon and Marie. It is rare to find parents who try to be creative with their children names or find other sources of inspiration than the Bible. However, my parents were special and so is my name. Were my parents creative? Yes indeed, but so were the people who made fun of me. "Wow, where did your parents get that name?" some kids would ask me. I would create stories about its origins, but what I didn't realize was that I was denying who I was. When I was young it bothered me to be so unique; to stand out instead of fitting in. This was mainly due to the song and its lyrics, but with age, as I grasped what Charles Aznavour was longing for, I began to sing a different tune.
As I grasped what [he] was longing for, I began to sing a different tune.
I remember one day taking the initiative of researching information about my name through books and the internet. I discovered that my first name can be found in different countries, from China to Spain, written in various ways and languages. From Isabelle Adjani, a famous French actress, to Isabelle, a popular generic theorem on the environment developed at Cambridge and Munich, the name is multi-functional.
Nevertheless, its origin is the same no matter how it is spelled, whether it is Isobel, Isabel, Isabelle, Isabele or Isabella. Isabelle, written as such, is originated from France and is a variant of the English name Elizabeth. In English, the name means devoted to God. The religious symbolism of my name was a surprise; just imagine how it would have changed my childhood fears! Nevertheless, I have no regrets; I strive on the originality and the melody of my name.
Depuis longtemps mon coeur For a long time my heart Etait à la retraite Had retired Et ne pensait jamais And I never thought Devoir se réveiller I had to awaken Mais au son de ta voix But at the sound of your voice J'ai relevé la tête I lifted my head Et l'amour m'a repris And love picked me up again Avant que d'y penser Before I had the chance to think
Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle Isabelle mon amour (my love)
I remember the last time I heard the song and finally understood the meaning of the lyrics. These were the longing words of Charles Aznavour for a woman he once loved named Isabelle, but for me it symbolized something different. For a long time I was ashamed of my name, afraid to be different. I couldn't come to terms with why I couldn't fit in and why I was constantly reminded I didn't belong. Nonetheless, my parents and Charles Aznavour repeating my name every day, let me know I couldn't escape who I was. It was not the song that bothered me all these years, but my fear of being an outsider. As I grew up, I began to own my name; I carried it with pride and honor. "I am Isabelle Véronique Alerte and I will not apologize for it." Although my name was at first an obstacle, it has now become a meaningful symbolism of my individuality.
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