Nicknames

Got any interesting nicknames?  I’ve been called Red. I’ve been called Lefty.  A whole group of folks used to refer to me as Cam.  Back when I was 16 I was even called Truck for one evening.  But that’s a different story for a different day.

I’ve always wanted to share with you my most endearing nickname.  But until recently I could not, because I couldn’t figure out how to spell it.   Let me explain.

When I was three years old my family moved to Perryton, Texas for dad’s work.  Dad worked with a group of Hispanic men, and they all fondly called him by a nickname.  Dad liked the name, and passed it down to me.  I’ve always wanted to use it as a screen name, or have it stamped on the back of a belt, or something to honor dad.  But I just didn’t know how it was spelled.  The name was pronounced KAW – ROWL. 

I loved to hear dad walk in the house after work and yell, “Where’s KAW-ROWL?”  But what did that mean?  And how was it spelled?  Dad said they told him it meant Red in Spanish.  But I took Spanish in 5^th grade, and I knew the Spanish word for Red is Rojo.  So, the mystery lingered.

Then, a couple of weeks ago, I was visiting with a relative of a relative who is Hispanic.  I asked him if he knew what KAW-ROWL meant.  He gave me a puzzled look, so I told him the back story.  “OH”, he exclaimed.  “You mean Colorado!”

Colorado?  Isn’t that a state?  Well, yes.  But it is also another word for red, in Spanish.  Of course, you have to put a heavy roll on the R (and apparently, the D is silent?)  After half a century, Mystery Solved!

So, if you like, you have my permission to call me Colorado.  But if you do, please pronounce it KAW-ROWL, with a heavy roll on the R.  And up in Heaven, Dad will be grinning!