I am meaningless no more!

For most of my adult life, I have searched for the meaning of my name. My mother told me it was Russian in origin. The story goes thus: since there were no ultrasound machines during the time of my birth, most couples usually rely on guesswork as to the gender of their babies. I was expected to come out a boy, and they had prepared the name Michael (since my due date fell on the feast of St. Michael the Archangel). So you can imagine their disappointment when I came out in my full feminine glory. My father didn't feel comfortable with the feminized version "Michaela" (thank goodness!) and so they had to look for an alternative. According to my mother (whose recounting I should not have trusted given that she was under heavy sedation that time - CS delivery) my Lola Tet scoured the Catholic calendar that hung on the wall of my mom's suite. There, (again, this is according to my drugged mom) was where they found the name St. Loyva of Russia, whose feast day also coincided on the day of my birthday. So all throughout my cognitive years, I have had this secret affinity with Russia. I really thought I could be connected somehow to this country and its culture.

As far back as I can remember, I have tried looking for the meaning (even relevance) of my name in libraries, through the help of the clergy, recollections of old relatives, etc. Then the Internet came. There was a particular month when I googled the meaning of my name almost everyday to no avail. I always keep getting results for a musician in Finland called Larissa Loyva. Fail. And then suddenly, without really meaning to do it, I googled my name today. Just my name and no other modifiers.

This is what I found on the fourth page of my google search results:

Imagine my joy at finally stumbling into this gold mine. After 32 years, I now have an inkling of what my name could possibly mean. I feel like celebrating! If I weren't pregnant at this point, I'd probably be hopping to the nearest bar right now to have a glass of wine (or two). But I shall console myself with just the happy feeling of being able to define myself, literally!

Thank goodness for the exhaustive powers of the Internet. I am meaningless no more!