My aunt put this photo on Facebook yesterday (along with a dozen more just like it) and it really caught me by surprise. My name is…. different to say the least. I hated it growing up but now I actually really love how unique it is. It has more meaning to my mother because she actually named me after someone special in her life.

The two kids pictured above are my mother Liz and her younger sister – Marianne.  To the right is my grandfather Joe and my grandmother is in the back smiling – Teresa. Between them is Auntie Vera. Growing up, Auntie Vera played a strong role in my mother’s life and she used to tell her if she ever had a daughter, she would choose Vera as the name.

And she did.

Auntie Vera died a long time ago . I’m pretty sure I was in the 4th grade. But we had so many of her things in our house to remind us of her. My grandparents, mother, aunt and I all lived in the same house for my entire life and we sort of  congregated on the first floor together – where my grandparents lived. Vera’s belongings were scattered everywhere so she was constantly present in our thoughts. If you believe in psychics – when I went to see one a few months ago she came through for me.

The psychic said “someone else named Vera is in the room and she has such a STRONG energy presence. She’s standing right over you – very protective of you. It’s almost hard for me to read this because she is draining me of my energy. That’s how powerful she is. She’s the only one I can hear or see at the moment.” (I paraphrased but you get the point)

When I went home and told my mother and aunt they said that was exactly like Vera. She was always the one who shined brightest in a room. She was a big personality and everyone was drawn to her. So, it made sense that she was so big and bold in the afterlife as well.

Anyway, this picture made me smile (and then cry because I sorely miss my grandfather) last night – so I thought I’d share it. It’s always nice to get a quick glance of your past.