The Reason Why

I receive a certain amount of grief regarding the use of a pen name. Some folks think I’m chicken, some report I’m embarrassed to use my legal name. Close friends ask me why, and I say why not?

In reality, I decided to use a pseudonym in order to honor a friend who passed away at the tender age of 32. She was a single mom, a working woman, and a barbershop singer who loved to go out on a Friday night. She was never too busy to listen to my questions concerning marriage and motherhood. She was barely 5’ but could blow you away with her Sweet Adeline baritone notes. She had spunk, humor, style and hope. She forgave people instantly, and welcomed everyone into her life. In the early 70’s she owned a home, a new car, and took a vacation when the stress at the office started to drag her down. She had a second job as a cocktail waitress at the bowling alley, and handled tipsy-touchy-feely customers with ease.

She died from cancer in 1978 and left behind a young son, loving parents, two sisters and a younger brother. At the funeral her family wore bright colors, and encouraged her friends to do the same. She was buried in a yellow dress with a pretty shawl, for those cool nights in Heaven.

Most of us have heroes in our lives. It might be a parent, a teacher, an actor, or a friend. Case in point is my husband holds John Wayne, Ronald Reagan, and Dale Earnhardt, Sr. in high regard. My hero, my role model, is Janis Gayle Newman and this will not change. I honor her each time I see 'JA’NEE NEWMAN' in print. I know she’s looking down on me from Heaven above, and she still has a song in her heart.

So don’t pressure me to use my maiden or married moniker, as I have my reasons for a pen name. An American author by the name of Bernard Malamud (1914-1986) once wrote: “Without heroes, we are all plain people and don’t know how far we can go.”