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Ever wonder why you were given the name you have? I used to hate my name for the longest time because it was so different from all the other kids.

This is the story of why my name is Antoinette:

When my mom was a young adult, she had to escape Vietnam during the Vietnam War in the 1970s. She escaped by means of refugee boats where she spent countless weeks out in the open ocean, forced to drink her own urine at times to survive. When she finally came to the United States, she lived in Mobile, Alabama with a sponsor family. She then moved to New York where her cousin was currently being supported by a different sponsor family. This family was part of a church and it was in this church where my mom met the pastor's wife who helped her with life skills and English. This woman's name was Antoinette.

Somewhere down the timeline, she met my dad. They decided to get married and start a family resulting in me. My dad wanted to name me Vicki after Jill Whelan's character on the Love Boat (LOL) but my mom said otherwise and named me after a wonderful, beautiful, caring pastor's wife.

After gaining more perspective on why I was named so, I've learned to love my name.