Emily Elizabeth. Macy Gray. Both names you have heard before. Both names represent  who I am.

Before I was born, Emily Elizabeth was my name. My mom had come up with it months before she even knew I was a girl. She loved the name, how it sounded together. It was cute and simple and not a common name at the time. She was so excited to bring me into the world with that as my name.

 Until one day she was sharing the name with a friend. She was ecstatic to find out that I was a girl. But when my mom shared my name, her friend looked at her with a puzzled look. “Like the little girl from Clifford, The Big Red Dog?” she asked. My mother was shocked. How had she not put this connection together? She chuckled to herself. She was not naming her little girl after a character from Clifford. 

A couple weeks later, my mom and dad were sitting in the living room, watching television, thinking of what other names they could agree on. They wanted something different— but not crazy. They couldn’t find one they both liked. Until they saw a famous musician who would be featured on a talk show they were watching. Her name, Macy Gray. a name they had never considered. It was simple like a quiet Sunday morning yet bold like a wild Friday night. And suddenly, it was the number one choice. 

Except, they wanted to add their own twist on it. So they called me, Macy Rae. Rae added that extra spark to my name like a firework exploding in the night sky. 

When I think about my name, honestly I think it sounds pretty cool. It’s a bright, beautiful red sunset over a calm, blue ocean. It is not common at all and adding Rae on it makes it even more unique. Like I said earlier, my parents liked it because it was simple yet bold. I often think I am the same way. I am very go-with-the-flow which keeps me simple. But I have a very effervescent personality that makes me bold and outgoing. So when people hear my name, I think they can get a pretty clear idea of who I am.