Musings of an 80's Baby

A girl was born to a family blessed with land in a quiet village. Spirituality ran deep in the veins of this family, with a devotion to God that was unmatched. The baby girl was unlike her mother, who had piercing blue eyes and a gentle disposition. She was born with a demanding cry and a fiery, opinionated and unrelenting character. The girl was named "Jarnail", as in commanding army general. Jarnail was a force to be reckoned with. She had a razor sharp photographic memory; when she told a story she recited the tiniest details as if she were in a trance of remembrance. Jarnail had an aura of light around her and deep set eyes that seemed all-knowing. She was raised to live a fulfilling, God serving life. Jarnail bore several children, six who survived infancy. A daughter was born to Jarnail who had an uncanny resemblance of spirit to her mother. She was a warrior, born to defy the bounds of an ordinary life. Jarnail raised her children with the wits of survival. She had a

Once upon a time there was a little brown girl who's name nobody could pronounce. She grew up wishing she had a name like 'Elizabeth', something easy and cool and not so different. This little girl dreaded anytime her teachers were out because that meant a substitute would butcher her name. Many a times this little girl turned bright red and raised her hand before the sub even got around to calling her name. Usually this happened because there was such a long drawn out pause from the sub, staring down at the attendance roster like it was written in hieroglyphics. The little girl knew that meant her name was next on the list and she politely raised her hand, making the sub's life much easier. She wasn't the only little girl in her school with a different name. Many of the children around her had names that came from all over the world, but not so many from where her family came from. The struggle of her name was one she carried with her for a long time. Even at her