The Sound of My Name

My name is only a shortened version of what the original was.

Noble. That's what it means in English.

Thirst. That's what it means in Hindi.

Although, I am not of noble ranking nor am I in thirst. I am not even the saint that they associate me with.

I am me. That name is me, but it is not me. What makes that name me are the people that say that name to me making that name my name. Mine. My own. It is associated to me. Only to me. Like a call. Each distinct, but directed with the same purpose.

My friends say my name with an ease. Present but not present. Common but not common. Sometimes with a persistence, and other times with exasperation. It is spoken softly but the pronunciation gives it a marble-mouthed sound. Not that clear, but clear enough to be heard and understood. They say it with a steadfast tone. Always strong.

My teachers say it with a push. A move forward to a direction that I can take to be the best I can become. Always nudging with a persistence, but not too much that I fall. It is nurturing but strict. Sometimes they shorten it, but not often. In the end, it always holds the same underlying mission. The same intention of helping strength.

 At home, I am called by a different name. Not too different to make it something else entirely, but unique enough to be proven something distinct from the rest. It's like a songbird. It's shrill with a slight trill on the first syllable. It is said with an accent. Slightly melodic but annoying at other times. They are filled with many indications. Emotions. Some are negative. Insistence. Exasperation. Anger. Some are positive. Affection. Cheerfulness. Gratitude.

My siblings call me something else entirely. It is derived from the meaning of "elder sister" in my native tongue. Not by my name they call me. In replacement, elder sister.  Sometimes they say it with scorn or an indifference. Other times with an affection. Most times with an annoying twinge that makes me want to break my already stretched patience.

In the end, it's me. My name is me. Always there but not there. None the less, I wouldn't have it any other way.

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I Found This Online, and I Don't Know Whether to Laugh or Feel Bad

Helping Others is What I Like to Do

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If I had the chance to choose any job at school, then I would be a school counselor. I have always liked to help people. From academic problems to emotional problems, I do what I can to help the person.

It bothers me when I see people losing their way or are unsure on certain things. If I'm given the chance then I'll try to guide them on the best path they can take. I like nurturing people and watching them grow and get better. Something about that just makes my day.

If anyone feels troubled or down then I'm willing to be there to help them solve their problems. Everyone needs a person there if they're facing a problem that they feel unsure of how to overcome. That's a school counselor's job. It's their job to be there for the students when they face troubling situations they need help on. It's their job to help students develop to be the best they can be.
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I feel like I would work in a middle school or maybe in a high school. To me, that's where most problems arise. That's when major changes happen, and people need guidance more than ever at that time. It's hard to choose which specific grade. I mean, don't school counselor's help everyone?

If I really had to choose, I would pick the beginning grade when you start middle school, eighth grade, freshman year, and senior year. I feel like that's the time when your the most vulnerable and susceptible to problematic situations.

Even then, I still would like to help anyone from any grade if their struggling with something. Everyone needs someone there to help them and to be their compass. I want to be that person.
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Special Trip Post! Part VIII What the-! These Shells are Alive!!!

To be honest, I just wanted to jump right back in the water when we got to the other side. Although, I stifled that urge in order to take some pictures.

You know what happened next right? I jumped into the water!

...not.

I waded into the water instead. I had to be careful. There were coral pieces and shells littered around the area. Although, once I went a safe distance away, I dived into the water. The water was warm. It almost felt welcoming. The only thing that bothered me was the stench.

I don't know how to describe it. It smelled like...something was rotting. Maybe it was fish poop! Wait. On second thought, the whole ocean is practically the bathroom for the animals. That thought almost made me want to get out of the water.

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Half-Truth (I'd Still Swim in the Water)

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Decidedly, I ignored it in favor of talking with my sister. We were trying to find shells, and I asked to see if she found any. She did! It was a shell, but it was in a cone-shaped spiral.

I took the shell out of her hand, and we went our separate ways to find new shells. After a while, I found more cone-shaped spiraled shells. They were rather cool to look at, so I decided to observe them and see if there were any differences.

All of a sudden, it happened.

With wide eyes, I saw something starting to wiggle out of the shell. With a slight poke of its head, its weird antennae-antler thingies started probing the surroundings. Slowly, it started coming out. It was a sea snail!

When it felt brave enough, the snail started moving! I watched with a face of disgusted (but not that disgusted) fascination as the snail slowly traversed my hand. Slowly, more of the snails started coming out of their shells. One by one, they started moving. I even saw a tiny snail climb on top of one of the bigger ones!

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Not the Right Snail, but Close Enough!

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I took a breath through my nose in fascination...and recoiled at the stench of the snails! Whoo wee! That was not pleasant! Come to think of it, they smelled exactly like the odor that I was thinking about earlier!

All of a sudden, a realization struck through my brain. Quickly, I started looking for signs of the snails as I held the ones in my hand with a careful but tight grip. 

As I walked nearer to a wall of rock, I saw it. On the wall were hundreds of snails firmly affixed to the side where the wall met water. They peppered the side, and some of them were above the water level! Maybe that was due to the high tide.

I stared at the snail-littered wall for a few moments, and I decided to put the snails back where I found them. I hope they'll be okay. Although...I heard that these types of snails are the ones that can be eaten. I hope that they were kidding...