I was called The Snow Queen in high school. I hated it. It was
started by a friend of mine because he thought that I thought myself
above everyone and a snob. So, I was a bit sad and anxious when the
movie Frozen came out. Strong women were something to be made fun of,
not celebrated. Every little girl was excited for that snow queen but
all I could hear was the nastiness behind the name.
For
the record, I never thought I was above anyone in high school. In fact,
I hated being there. Sure, I had a nice group of friends since
elementary school but I felt like I could do better learning things on
my own at home. My parents were teachers in the local public school
system and felt the need to practice what they preached, as it were. For
the most part, my head was buried in books or I was busy writing
stories, so I can see how that can come off as snooty but when
approached, I was always a nice person. I just didn't have time for
nonsense. Kind of like right now.
I hated to
be called The Snow Queen. My male friends would shiver when I walked by
them and it was annoying as all hell. I would cock my eyebrow at them
and they would act as if is frozen them on the spot. Not my fault that I
didn't want to fit any sort of mold. Boys are idiots. Fast forward to
Disney creating Queen Elsa, a snow queen, and I started to be afraid of
her. Afraid of myself. Maybe there was something to the nickname? Doubt
is a horrible thing.
The Sailor took the girls
to see the movie and I was glad of it but nervous to hear about it all.
Banshee loved the movie so much that she started to sing and talk about
it all the time. Pixy was excited because she loved dancing to the music
and said the story was amazing. Sailor loved it because he said Queen
Elsa was strong and kicked butt, certainly a snow queen he could
endorse. Huh. Really?
I decided to go and
experience it for myself. This was not a Snow Queen to be mocked. She
rocked and even though she doubted herself, doubted her strength, she
didn't apologize for it once she felt comfortable in her skin. A smart,
poised Snow Queen. Now, that's royalty I don't mind being compared to.
That
night, I shared with my girls the name I was called by friends in high
school. Their reaction was priceless! Pixy said: "I'm glad you owned it,
Mama. Strong ladies are awesome. I want to be like that." Banshee
said:" Boys are jackasses." Yup, it looks like I passed on the qualities
that I was mocked for to my two little Snow Queens in-training. I think
I finally feel comfortable with that name. I owned my personal Snow
Queen. Now, I need to look for a mountain and sing out my metamorphosis.
What a win!
Have you owned a nickname or name you were called in the past? How did you get there? Share with us!
Photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net "Ice Queen" by Charisma
