Life can seem like anything but a dream, at times, especially when rowing upstream, to boot.

But if you keep paddling hard enough, and long enough, just about the time you think you can't pull for one more stroke, you'll come to a little backwater-of-a-pool, where you can lift your oar out of the water and rest.

I've struggled my way past quite a few hidden snags and down some pretty hair-raising rapids on this voyage of mine so far, and I've even traveled in different boats with some mighty strong paddlers over the years, taking on the name of each captain.

When those boats began to leak, I bailed like crazy to stay afloat. Yet in spite of the effort, we capsized, and I got soaked clear through a time or two.

But that doesn't mean I've given up the journey - not yet.

However, I am ready for a little respite in this upstream struggle. And right here, in the bend of this creek called the Horsetail Run, which empties into the Clearfork River, I think I've found a haven where I can glide into the shallows, take my paddle out of the water, and rest for a spell.

Now you're probably wondering what all this prattle about creeks and rivers and paddles has to do with anything.

O.K., I'll tell you.

For quite some time, now, I've paddled like mad in what feels like nothing more than a patched-up inner tube, but I'm not ready to climb into someone else's boat - not yet. This time, I'm going to build my own boat, and christen it with a new name that belongs to no one else.

So, along with this latest move (and all the change-of-address cards), I'm also dropping the painful reminder of my old last name to take on a moniker that's mine alone.

I just want to be MaryLee.

So after this long metaphoric amble, can you guess my new last name?

Marilee.

MaryLee Marilee. Makes you smile, doesn't it? Sounds kind of silly and a little crazy all at once (sort of like its owner).

Good. That's just what I want - to bring more smiles into my little corner of the world, and to have the chance finally to be me.

Besides, I think it'll look great on a book cover!

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