One “T”

When I was a kindergartner, my teacher wrote everyone’s name on the board and one by one called each of us to the board to find our name and erase it. When she came to me, I informed her that my name was not on the board so she passed me by, moved to the next little kid, and thought I’d eventually catch up to the rest and find my name on the board.

Until the end … there I was, one name on the board and one child still in his seat and not recognizing his name on the board.

On the board was “Scott,” and I finally informed her that my name was not “Scott” but instead was “Scot.” (As in “Scotland.”)

Shall I refrain today from mentioning that a rash of folks have been misspelling my name, a name connected to a country? So, if you are having trouble remembering, just jog your memory by saying “Do we spell it ‘Scottland’ or ‘Scotland’?” Shall I mention that one of my professors kindly informed me that the first thing you learn about a person is his or her name and the second thing you learn is how to spell the name?