Who is Collin Chambers and where is Madera???
When I was a kid growing up in the seventies, most everybody had what I would have called a “normal” name- you know…Billy…Sally…John… and not only did I have a “boy’s name,” but according to many, it was also misspelled. Collin is traditionally spelled Colin, but my mother said she added an “L” and that made it feminine…I told her… “only to you, mom!” Like any kid, I just wanted to feel normal.
I was also THAT KID…. you know the one…with the weirdo name that was oddly similar to everyones favorite body part…the colon. Kids can be downright brutal! And my middle name? Oh, just forget it. It only got worse…Stuart. That’s right… Collin Stuart Chambers. I always thought… “WTH, mom???? I’m a GIRL!!! What are you trying to do? Get me killed???” This proved to be very challenging for a young, insecure child. Something you James’ and Cathy’s know nothing about….
I developed some pretty negative judgements about my name that I carried with me for literally, decades. In 2013, living in an enchanted community in Peru, I was gifted a new name and proceeded to whimsically changed my name to “Madera Salvaje,” a name that I absolutely fell in love with, but after returning home, later found out that hardly anyone could pronounce properly! (…especially here in the south…oh, don’t even get me started 🙂
Well…. I have decided to CHANGE this story that I have dragged with me well into adulthood… by embracing that little girl with her limiting beliefs and horrifying memories of being bullied and picked on, and send her some good ‘ol fashioned unconditional love. I am now delighted to unite all of Madera’s magic and amazing adventures into my authentic WHOLE SELF here in 2019, balanced and centered, and ready for a brand new adventure! I love my name… Collin Stuart Chambers. Thanks for the weird name, mom 🙂
Please feel free to call me Collin or Madera… to me it matters not, for I will always be both… but as you can see I have officially changed my name here in the Book of Faces back to my birth name which I lovingly embrace.
xox Collin
