Big News – Personal Rebranding

Introduction

As I had shared in this post back in March: Failure: My Personal Story

I got divorced 2 years ago this month. It was a very difficult time for me, and there were a lot of decisions that I just didn’t have the capacity to make at that time. One of the big ones was whether to change my name back to my maiden name. So I didn’t do it then; it seemed like too much to take on on top of everything else going on. I also had this name for so long; it really grew on me. I was married for 15 years. 

Backstory

Growing up, I never liked my last name because I got teased in school about it. I also stopped wearing my favorite color for many years because of the bullying at school over it. In hindsight, I realize that I abandoned who I was to fit in and to be accepted. I hid. I shrank. I did everything I could to avoid being noticed and making a scene, and to avoid additional confrontation (I literally remember hiding in the bathrooms, ducking under bookshelves, and running into corners to avoid these girls that bullied me). 

Now I know that they treated me that way because I was an easy target. I was never confident, always awkward, and always trying to hide. 

More than seeing what I was putting out, I also see the pain they had inside that caused them to want to inflict that pain on other people. That’s heartbreaking. 

But all is good now; I see it, I know it, I’ve healed some parts of it, and I’m forever continuing to heal and grow – that is the true victory. 

Planning

So, I decided to change my last name back to my maiden name, and while I was at it, I also updated my first name. I’ve always wanted to change my first name, ever since I was a kid in first grade. I really never felt like it suited me, and I always planned to change it to something “prettier” when I grew up. 

Life happened; I had kids really young, and it never seemed like the right time – Until now! 

I’ve also always been intrigued by how God changes people’s names in the Bible, or gives them new or additional names (Abram to Abraham, Sarai to Sarah, Jacob to Israel, etc.). I’ve heard sermons on it that highlight the fact that when you have a new NAME, you have a new WALK. I do feel like I’m in a new season of my life where I have to be braver than I’ve ever been before. More confident than I’ve ever been before. Stronger than I’ve ever been before. SO much God is bringing out of me right now that I had held inside. Including stepping into a new name. 

Reintroduction

I would like to reintroduce myself – My legal name is now Gennisys McGaugh! 

I will now embrace my heritage, and I will not let any negative comments about my “strange” last name bother me. 

My ancestors came to the US from Ireland during the Potato Famine in the 1800’s and were homesteaders in the Northern states. Link: https://www.history.com/articles/irish-potato-famine

Such a beautiful story of perseverance and overcoming. Just as we all still do today in different ways. 

Closing

I’m excited for this new beginning, which is part of why I chose “Gennisys” as my new first name (it literally means “beginning”/“origin”). That, and it’s fairly close to my former name, making the adjustment smoother. 

I hope my story inspires others who might be contemplating a BIG change like this. I hope you choose YOU and you do what you feel led to do, no matter what others think, say, or do. You are the author of your story, and only you (and your creator) know who you are meant to be. 

If you feel lost and aren’t sure what your path is (it’s unclear), I want to encourage you to seek God. Your creator made you, and he has a perfect plan for you. Maybe it’s time to ask Him what it is. 

And if you do know your purpose, I hope you will follow it with great tenacity. It’s SO easy to get caught up in the little details that don’t matter in the big picture and forget the big picture. Life has endless distractions, but when we have a clear vision of where we are heading, the small things always seem to fall into place.

One of my favorite Mark Twain Quotes really fits this moment:

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

― Mark Twain 

Author Biography