Abhi

People's fates are simplified by their names.

- Elias Canetti

Abhi. Short, sweet, shows my heritage, but don’t even get me started on how many times I have seen my name spelt or pronounced wrong. If only I had a nickel for every time...

When I imagine my name I think of the colour purple. Imagine a meadow. Filled with red and blue, only one purple flower in the middle, dancing with the breeze. Elegant, yet staying upright. The envy of the red flowers and the friendliness of the blue. This is the picture I want people to get whilst hearing name. Whether for the first time or the hundredth time. The purple flower so unique, like my name. Purple: The mix of red and blue. Red, the colour of envy and war. Blue, the colour of the ocean and the sky. Very different colours, with different meanings. Yet, when put together so beautiful. “Like most babies you were wrapped in a pink blanket. What made you stand out was the enormous purple stuffed toy that your sister had placed at the bottom of the crib called Barney. This was her gift to you.” My mum used to tell me this as a child. To be specific the colour of the toy was purple, royal purple. Elegant and strong at the same time.

I like the fact that my name is rare. I have only met one person with the same name. This makes me feel unique. When my parents heard that they were going to have another child, they were curious to find out if it was a girl or a boy. When my parents discovered they were having a girl, they were ecstatic! They started researching names right away. Both of them absolutely wanted a name that illustrated my heritage, Indian and Australian/Irish/English. After procrastinating for about a month my dad proposed a middle name, Alexandra, meaning ‘The protector’. It was the perfect name to represent half of my heritage. As for the first name, they compromised and agreed to spend a week making their own “name lists”. At the end of the week they sat down and shared their lists. My parents had both picked short, sweet, simple, Indian names. What was apparent was they had both picked names beginning with the letter ‘A’. They pored over each others list and eliminated any names that would lose their charm when said by a Non-Indian. They could only agree upon one name that was timeless and charming no matter how you said it, Abhi, meaning ‘Fathers joy’. I have also heard that my name means ‘Fearless’ and ‘Now’. I would like to think that I am fearless, I am not afraid of taking risks. I don’t enjoy dwelling on the past or figuring out the future. I like to live in the now. My name is short, sweet and simple, like me.