What's in a Name?

Here's the thing, I had to get my name changed recently and I got to thinkin......this aint fair!!! Why is it that the guy has it smooth sailing, while the girl is having to change everything!  There's more to it than the simple name change though, there is something deeper that happens when you get your name changed...at least for me.  As I stood in line for an hour and a half only to get a ticket that would get me into another line for 3 hours, I couldn't help but get flustered.  At first I thought it was the fact that I was standing in line surrounded by smelly people from every country but our own, but after I finally got out of there with a horrible picture on my new license, I realized that was not what was bothering me at all.  I don't know if any new bride has felt the same, but as I walked out of that building, all I could think of was that Ashley Gordon just disappeared.  Now, I am not one of those women's rights kinda girl, I have always said "of course I would take my husbands name, that was just the wifely thing to do," but I must say, it was harder than I thought!  Please don't misunderstand, I love my husband and I am proud to be Mrs. Jimeno, but I have been Ashley Gordon for 25years! That evening, I had a major breakdown.  Poor Andres must have thought he had married a nut and was going to have to commit me to the loony bin, but something came over me that I could not control.  After hours of sobbing and hiding my hideous, puffy, red face I was finally able to blurt out what was bothering me.  As happy as one can be to get married and spend the rest of your life with the person you love, there is still sadness over the things that are left behind.  After many tears and talking to Andres and my mom, I came to realize that Ashley Gordon didn't disappear, she grew up.  A name can never take away who you are, where you have been, and the memories that will be with you for a lifetime; it only opens a new chapter and new and exciting adventures.  I miss my parents, my old bed, my mom's cooking, my single friends and my own bathroom, but the great thing is that I am beginning a new type of relationship with my parents, one of friendship, I am developing new friendships with some great couples, and I am living in a new home with the man I love.....Life could not be better.  For all you new brides, change happens, and it's ok to feel sad, but don't let it consume you.  Embrace the change and let the Lord handle the rest for His plan is best!