New Lives for Old

Some people have the knack for re-inventing themselves. Fiorella has known three extreme examples: Carolyn, Sue, and Andrew, all academics.

Carolyn changed her last name by marriage at least three times, then changed her first and last names legally, then changed her last name again by marrying again. Her personality went to the extreme as she became a guru of metaphysical enlightenment.

Sue was deliberately deceptive, adopting a British accent and letting her colleagues think her degree from a Canadian university called Oxford was from THE Oxford. It worked. Academic males go gaga for a British accent. Too bad she couldn't bring herself to pay her daughter's piano teacher.

Andrew who'd started using his middle name after an investment scandal, reinvented himself as a philosophy teacher. He imitated the behavior of other academics, got in good with everyone, and was up and coming until someone discovered that he didn't have the advanced degrees he'd claimed.

Fio liked all three of these people. They were charming. But she doesn't understand re-invention of oneself, maybe because she's gone the opposite direction, seeking out her core.

Yes, Fio's an open book, and you're reading her.