Since I have another post lined up and ready, but have been waiting for other parties first to explain How We Named Our Van, and then finding no such explanations forthcoming, I have taken it upon myself to offer one such now. As it describes people and events some fifteen years past, I cannot guarantee its complete accuracy, but hey, it’s all you’ve got.
We actually spent a fair amount of time trying to name the van. We wanted it to be clever and meaningful and maybe a pun or at least a twist of words. Many candidates had a nautical theme, a few referenced whales, or combinations of our names, or the fact that the van is big and blue and has wheels and we’ll live in it, and so on. Nothing quite clicked.
When Joe was what, five, and losing his primary teeth, he of course put them under the pillow for the tooth fairy. That turned out to be a good deal for him, and he was quite taken with the whole process. One of the transactions involved a two-dollar bill, and Joe was so excited about this that he wrote a thank-you note and left it under his pillow the next night. The Tooth Fairy had to reply. A steady correspondence between Joe and the Tooth Fairy, aka Elizabeth, ensued.
I’m not sure if he asked, or she volunteered, but the topic of her name came up. She told him it was Mavi, the Turkish word for blue. Years ago, Elizabeth taught English in Turkey, and has a high regard for the country. Joe and Mavi continued to pass notes for quite a while.
The van is blue (Blue Jean in Ford color lingo). We’ve named it Mavi. And since her license plate starts with ELW, her full name is Mavi Elwood.
Elizabeth
Henry