My name means illustrious. My name is comforting but also carries the aura of success. As I see it, my name is a rock ballad. Famous for the lyrics instead of the catchy tune. Clare is silk. Silk is soft and comforting but can also be used to make beautiful clothing worn on runways. Clare is a dainty claddagh ring. It is something so tiny that carries a meaning.

Clare is maroon. Red is a fierce and powerful, but maroon is gentle, but not gentle like pink. Gentle in a dark way. Maroon seems edgy; however, it is not at all.

I share a name with an Irish county. I’ve been there once. A place where the cliffs stare into the deep blue eyes of the ocean. In return, the ocean’s waters crash and roar down below but from above they seem to gingerly collapse on top of one another. Clare is where the grass welcomes everyone who takes a step in its chartreuse blades. Clare the county is friendly and soft. My name is more smooth and introverted.

In Clare, tourists flock to the Cliffs of Moher. Even though the entire coast looks the same, visitors swarm to the Cliffs of Moher. This is my name. A small part of it draws attention, which is its lack of an ‘i’. The way it is spelled at every souvenir shop. It used to bother me, but now I don’t even bother looking at the rack of alphabetized souvenirs.

I remember my 3rd grade teacher writing illustrious on my paper about myself. Now I know what it means. It means I will be a rock ballad. A silk gown illuminating the room packed with lusterless dresses.  A claddagh ring. I will have a meaning. I will be maroon. My tenacity for success will be intimidating. I didn’t know what illustrious meant at the time. But I will become illustrious. That will be my meaning.