When my parents were deciding what to name me, they briefly considered Jennifer and Jenny before finally settling on Jena. My mom (an elementary school teacher at the time) decided that Jennifer was too long. She always felt sorry for kids with lengthy monikers because it took them forever to learn how to write their names. And I can see her point. I mean, if my name had been Savannah, I can imagine becoming discouraged right around the first "n". And that's just a little over half-way. It's no wonder that kindergarten is the time when Jonathans transform into Jons, etc.
The problem with "Jenny" didn't have anything to do with length. My parents both grew up in farming communities, and they were worried that kids might tease me because—get this—a jenny is a female donkey. I always thought this reasoning was hilarious, given the fact that I grew up in Albuquerque without a donkey in sight. The odds of some kid hee-hawing in my general direction were slim to none, because the other kids would have undoubtedly been like " . . . the hell?". And THEN who would have looked like a jackass?
Anyway, I'm happy my parents settled on Jena. Although I do get called "Gina" an awful lot, I still like the name. It's a little unusual but not too wacky. Fitting.
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