I am who I am...

Ever since Joe and I got married in May, the "name change" topic has always been a mystery for Joe's family. They have never asked if I would be changing my name. Somehow along the line, they think I would have changed my name by now, and that it is a natural thing to do.

The reality is that I do not see a need to change my name just to show my hubby how much I love him. Besides, I spent the last ten years shaping my career path, and throughout time, I have built my reputation in the industry and changing my name will simply create un-necessary confusion. Joe and I discussed about this before we got married, and Joe is pretty cool with it. :-)

Since late November, wedding invitations and christmas cards have slowly made their way to our mailbox. Every card we received, it reads " Louisa & Joe Vautour"... the first time I saw it, I felt weird seeing my name and Joe's last name being put together. Throughout time, I begin to feel that I have lost my identity. I feel that I have become part of Joe's possessions and being a feminist, this bothers me a great deal.

I am who I am. I am proud of what I have achieved career-wise in the last 10 years. I spent numerous winter nights staying late at work to meet the deadlines of various projects. I spent countless weekends, in my sweatpants, working to implement a "next-to-impossible" project. I chose working over dating on the weekends back in my single-gal life. Though I still put in long hours at work, I am happy to see that I have gone a long way to get to where I am today. I embrace future work challenges with an open arm. I love my husband, I love our life together, I do not see the need of a name change, I love being a Pang... I am who I am... and hello... my name is Louisa Pang!