My mother spontaneously started calling me Olive Oyl one morning. I'm not sure why. Short and blonde hair with a body full of curves, I look nothing like the long-limbed, toothpick thin character. But there must have been something in my demeanor that morning, in the way I sat with my hair pulled back, staring out the window, that prompted my mother to exclaim, "You look like Olive Oyl!"

I know nearly nothing about Miss Oyl. Regardless, something about the name Olive felt exactly right. My mother continued using the nickname for me. I adopted Olive as my alias. Sometimes I give the name at restaurants while waiting for a table or when I'm shopping at my favorite boutique and the salesgirl asks for a name as she shows me to a dressing room or on those days when I simply don't feel quite like Amanda.

One friend whom I told about my assumed name said, "Why would you want to name yourself after Olive Oyl? She's annoying." Another friend said, "I can totally see you as an Olive." Aren't people funny with their opinions?

Thus, Oh Olive! It's "Oh" for that word's expression of joy, wonder, discovery and surprise. It's "Olive" because this name has come to represent the parts of myself that I hope to cultivate more. Olive is light-hearted and playful. She is centered. She does not need to yell or lose her temper in order to stand up for herself. She is tender. And while Amanda worries about her career, about flattening her stomach, about whether or not her life is proceeding properly and according to plan, Olive trusts in the divine order of things and knows that every moment is cause for celebration. Oh Olive! is the place where I share my work with the world. It is where I hope to connect with my readers and meet wonderful people who will, just as Olive has, help me to become a better human being.