Isabella is the name my father gave me. Naming me not only after him, but also his father. My grandfather's name is Isidoro and after he died in 2002, my dad changed his name from Robert to Isidoro.

My father wanted us to have a similar name because I was the last daughter. He wanted us to have the same nickname, Izzy. We both go by Izzy, except he calls me Isabella.

My family calls me Isabella and my school friends call me Izzy. My closest friends call me Iz. Nobody calls me Bella or Isabelle. It’s kind of annoying when people say my name is Isabelle. They don’t fully read my name even though there is an “a” at the end. The “A” is important to me. 

I never thought Isabella was a common name until I got older and realized how many people my age were named Isabella. When I moved I noticed more people with the same name as me or different variations of it. I liked being the only one with my name but oh well.

To me, Isabella is a soft, quiet, independent, innocent little girl. Isabella is family oriented and acts like a princess from a fairytale such as Bell or Aurora. When I think of Isabella, I think of someone who cares about getting good grades, cares about going to her music lessons, and cares about baking cookies every sunday for her church. Someone who is perfect. Izzy is a wild, loud, funny, rebellious, weird teenage girl. Izzy is a small girl with a big personality.

Isabella is yellow. Specifically a light but bright pastel yellow. Isabella is the texture of a flower petal. Isabella is a yellow wooden chair outside on an old lady’s porch behind a garden. Isabella is the sound of bright, light blue birds chirping in the morning. A sunny day. 

Izzy is a hot pink, sparkly lipgloss sitting in the cup holder of a white Mercedes-Benz sitting in a parking lot waiting to go on an adventure all around the country with her friends. Izzy is like a hot tamale. Feisty, fiery, and fierce. Izzy is the smell of the city on a girls night out. Izzy is the feeling of being at an EDM concert in the middle of a summer night. Izzy is the sound of music blasting from a car speeding down the roads along the coast of California. Izzy is the mindset of “you’ll be fine no matter what”, “go with the flow”, and “i’m ready for anything that comes my way”. Izzy is the fun side of Isabella.

I’m more of an Izzy when i’m with my friends because I really just let myself go and with their personalities, they just bring out the crazy side of me. When i’m with my family, i’m more of an Isabella because i’m more normal and taimed because thats how my family is. My family is very independent and quiet and normal. My friends are the complete opposite of that. I’m also a very adaptable person. I usually match other peoples energies when i’m around them so we can vibe together. So depending on who i’m around, a different energy of mine comes out so depending on who you are, I can be an Izzy or an Isabella.