What's In a Name

"Do not assume that she who seeks to comfort you, lives untroubled among the simple and quiet words that sometimes do you good. Her life may also have much sadness and difficulty, that remains far beyond yours. Were it otherwise, she would never have been able to find these words." ~Rainer Maria Rilke
　
The other day, a friend said to me, "so, Bean! What’s with these ‘Beanstalk Chronicles’ that I’m reading? What does that even mean?"
Indeed. What does that even mean? I probably should have begun with this entry, but that would have been too easy! [LOL] Back to the point at hand. There is so much in the name, at least for me. The title of my blog and the blog itself means this:
It is something I’ve created as a vehicle through which I can feel re-connected to the world outside of my home; it’s a means by which I can continue using a degree that I spent a lot of years and my parents and I spent a great deal of money working toward; and, it’s an effort to restore some structure to a life that was interrupted by illness and injury that, in effect, sidelined me from being part of the 9-5 crowd.
I’m a writer. It’s what I’ve identified myself as being since I was a young girl. For me, It’s not so much about being paid for writing, though, that was always a nice perk. As a writer, I find it’s more a desire to have people want to read my thoughts and ideas. Writing is a passion for me. It’s not about money or fortune. It’s also not just about having something to say, but having what you say mean something to someone – touch them in some way; teach them something; enlighten them about a subject that they had no prior understanding of, or simply just to entertain them. Any achievement of one or combination thereof of these elements is a good thing, if you’re a writer. I’ve been through some stuff in my life. I have some stuff to say. Whether you want to read it or not will be entirely up to you.
With regard to the name. There is a lot of symbolism in the name. Part of it comes from a nickname friends call me. My closest friends know me as Jhillybean, [Jhilly] and Bean. To one very special friend, I’m a.b., but that’s a private joke, and should she ever read this entry, she’ll recognize herself. Symbolism is a big thing with me. Numbers have special significance too, as do words. It’s just the way my brain works.
There are also some hidden meanings in the blog’s name that just seemed sentimentally right. My grandparents, who were the best grandparents any kid could ever hoped to have had were farmers. As a child visiting them in the summer, it was an adventure for us [my brother, sister, and me] to go out into the fields with my grandfather and help him pick crops. It might not sound like anything special or fun to anyone us, but for us it was the best! Sometimes, the best adventures in life don’t cost a dime and truly can occur right in your own backyard. My grandparents backyard was a smorgasbord of adventure and fun. So, while "Bean" refers to a nickname of mine, the beanstalk is my homage to two people who not only meant the world to me, but also taught me so much about life and getting along in the world by their respectable yet unassuming example. Rest assured, there will be future stories about them here for anyone who’s interested.
The beanstalk name has a dual purpose. Have you ever seen one? Like all the plants I’m aware of, it grows upward, reaching beyond itself for nourishment from outside sources – the rain; the air; the sun – those things which help it grow. It keeps moving forward in a direct path due north, as if it’s reaching to the breadth from where it is currently, to where it wants to be: in a place that’s constantly striving to receive grow-able [my word] nutrients. This is the nod to my spirituality and belief in something greater than myself – that which sustains me. One thing, however, that I notice about a beanstalk from pictures that I’ve seen as well as in person, is that a beanstalk doesn’t merely look like it’s growing upward. It looks as if it’s rampantly climbing, because it can’t get fast enough, to that source which makes it hearty and healthy and capable of nourishing something else.
Finally, the word ‘chronicle’ is my way of acknowledging the degree in journalism and communications that my parents were benevolent enough to provide me with. However, there’s much more to the importance of that word for me. It’s a word that makes me think of a story. We all have one. Each one is important. Some stories are told by people who are fortunate enough not just to have lived them, but who were able to archive them in their memory bank to share with others. It is a gift.
My grandfather was a wonderful story teller. He could have you anxiously on the edge of your seat, waiting for the next thought he was about to tell in a story that was always good for a bellylaugh or, on occasion, quiet reflection. My grandmother was an avid reader as is my mother and brother. I don’t know if that can be classified as a hereditary passing on, but I came by my love of books, and reading naturally. I love an enjoyably satisfying tale. I love telling them too.
So, that’s what’s in the name. I hope someone out there wants to climb the beanstalk with me. I hope there are individuals who anxiously await a new entry of mine, the way I use to hunt the newspaper for Erma Bombeck’s latest column years ago. Will it be an adventure? Journey’s always are. Will it be insightful? I guess it depends on what you’re looking for. My hope is that it will make you think–ponder–reflect. If it makes you laugh, all the better. If something makes you cry, well, tears can be cathartic sometimes too. It’s all good! I hope that’s what you’ll find here – things that are good and beneficial in some way. I hope that you’ll always be glad you stopped by my little world to see what’s going on where the beanstalks are growing. I hope that after you read, you’ll feel the way I did when I left my grandmother’s table: very grateful and always satisfied.
Happy climbing!

Written by: Jhill Perran
June 24, 2011