Tuesday, January 4, 2011

A New Identity

It is so strange to have such a new identity thrust upon myself as it has been.  During the honeymoon and right after, I felt very little change in who I am.  I will say, the words "husband" and "wife" are taking a little time to get used to.  Though very little changed with regard to lifestyle, I feel like we're learning our roles with respect to one another again as if it were the first time.

I would imagine that in most professions, a name change is a relatively minor occurrence.  As a teacher, it has been tedious.  For the last two and a half years, my kids have called me Miss W.  Now that I'm Mrs. H, my past and current students stutter when they try to talk to me.  I also have a fairly common and very easy to pronounce maiden name.  My new name has to be pronounced and spelled a few times before the kids pick it up.

Legally, I'm in limbo right now.  I've changed my name with social security, but I have to wait to change just about everything else until I actually receive my new card in the mail. 

When we went on our honeymoon, I found out that my first name was spelled wrong on my passport!  It is a very common name with only one spelling of which I know.  So now I have to change both my last name and the spelling of my first name, which involves two different forms through the State department.

It will be very nice, one day, to be known as Mrs. H to everyone - including myself!  I'm just not sure how long it will take to get there.

2 comments:

  1. Isn't it an amazing feeling? I've been married for almost 15 years and I sometimes still sign my maiden name when I'm busy and just not thinking. I can't believe I just said that because it sounds kind of stupid. But my maiden name is still such a part of who I am. I think the kids will adapt. A good exercise for them about a facet of marriage.

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  2. It will happen before you know it!

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