Hello Superstars,
Boom! I was casually lounging around when the #2 Thing I Strongly Dislike came to mind. As you all know, my name is Sarah Elizabeth. Yes, I know it is boring, and you probably know five other Sarah Elizabeths. It is a very common name, but it is uncommon for an African American to have it - at least, I've been told that.
We all experience on the first day of school having to tell a new teacher or the class our name. Whenever I stood in front of the class and said my name, FIVE SECONDS later my teacher would twist the pronunciation to make it sound like Sierra.
People twisting my name to make it sound like Sierra is the #2 Thing I Strongly Dislike. I understand if we are in a noisy place where it is hard to make introductions, and you hear "Sierra" instead of
"Sarah". That is perfectly fine because I probably heard you say "Bobby" rather than "Tommy". But if you are a teacher looking right at my information sheet, then we have a major problem.
I try my hardest to pronounce people's names correctly. It could be a traditional Indian name or unique name your parents created, I will do my best to say it the way you want it to sound. It's called RESPECT.
Over the years, I have dealt with people dropping the H from name. I can deal with that because my name would still sound the same. I cannot deal with people screwing up the pronunciation.
Sometimes I feel sympathy for the lack of education people have. I think in any race others find it difficult to meet an African American girl with the name Sarah, especially with the birth of "celebrity" baby names. They do not realize the list of well- known Sarahs that aren't your stereotypical image of the name. For instance, there is a poet, Sarah Kay, that is blend of Japanese and Jewish ancestry, and has an amazing voice and flow. And you would not believe how popular the name Sarah was among slaves.
Also, there are plenty of girls that "fit" the characteristics of the name Sarah, but have the name Sierra. So, do not ever judge a book by its cover.
I would like to close this with a favor: please do not call me Sierra.
Love ya,
Sarah E.
Boom! I was casually lounging around when the #2 Thing I Strongly Dislike came to mind. As you all know, my name is Sarah Elizabeth. Yes, I know it is boring, and you probably know five other Sarah Elizabeths. It is a very common name, but it is uncommon for an African American to have it - at least, I've been told that.
We all experience on the first day of school having to tell a new teacher or the class our name. Whenever I stood in front of the class and said my name, FIVE SECONDS later my teacher would twist the pronunciation to make it sound like Sierra.
People twisting my name to make it sound like Sierra is the #2 Thing I Strongly Dislike. I understand if we are in a noisy place where it is hard to make introductions, and you hear "Sierra" instead of
"Sarah". That is perfectly fine because I probably heard you say "Bobby" rather than "Tommy". But if you are a teacher looking right at my information sheet, then we have a major problem.
I try my hardest to pronounce people's names correctly. It could be a traditional Indian name or unique name your parents created, I will do my best to say it the way you want it to sound. It's called RESPECT.
Over the years, I have dealt with people dropping the H from name. I can deal with that because my name would still sound the same. I cannot deal with people screwing up the pronunciation.
Sometimes I feel sympathy for the lack of education people have. I think in any race others find it difficult to meet an African American girl with the name Sarah, especially with the birth of "celebrity" baby names. They do not realize the list of well- known Sarahs that aren't your stereotypical image of the name. For instance, there is a poet, Sarah Kay, that is blend of Japanese and Jewish ancestry, and has an amazing voice and flow. And you would not believe how popular the name Sarah was among slaves.
Also, there are plenty of girls that "fit" the characteristics of the name Sarah, but have the name Sierra. So, do not ever judge a book by its cover.
I would like to close this with a favor: please do not call me Sierra.
Love ya,
Sarah E.
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