My Name Is...

Jackie.

Yes, my given name is Jackie. Not Jack. Not John. Jackie.

You can imagine how much shit a dorky white boy* gets when his name is Jackie. Jackie is a girls name.

Somehow, every February, I got some relief. February was Black History Month. At my elementary school, the curriculum was celebratory. Jackie Robinson's achievements were certainly recounted and praised. And Jackie Julian no longer felt the heat. I had the cool name. I shared a moment with Jackie Robinson.

So Jackie Robinson, thank you for allowing this dorky white boy to feel proud of his name, especially today, Jackie Robinson Day.

"A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives."

"42"


*full disclosure: Except for 7th - 9th grade, I attended schools in which I was in very much the ethnic minority. Rankin Elementary and Buchtel High School. Moreover, I was a dweeb dork nerd social retard until 10th grade. In an aim to use measured and appropriate language, kids are kids, and I was the very different one, not necessarily in a cool way.