V is for VIRGINIA

My next door neighbor as a child was Mrs. Gamble (VIRGINIA ) she had the most amazing book collection, Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys so many all wonderful, this was Mexico City and her books were in English. She was my private library and when I returned a book, she made me a banana split, have never tasted one that good ever… and discussed the books with me, I was lucky, her daughter Cathy a few years older was State side at a boarding school… This lady was one of the biggest most wonderful gifts from the UNIVERSE in my childhood. She gave me a passion for reading and an understanding of characters and storyline no school or teacher ever did.

I started reading so fast that she had me take 3 and four books at a time, I also learned a lot about Minnesota, the family was probably originally from that state. Her husband Bill was an executive with the Ford Foundation in Mexico City. In this life I have had many lovely neighbors, but none that have impacted me the way Mrs. Gamble did… a fairy Godmother of sorts . I also had a great AUNT GINNY I so loved, her middle name AUSTIN is my son’s name.

Virginia \v(i)-rgi-nia, vir–ginia\ as a girl’s name is pronounced vir-JIN-yah. It is of Latin origin, and the meaning of Virginia is “maiden“. The name was originally spelled Verginia, and was the feminine form of an ancient Roman clan name Verginius. With time, its spelling changed due to its association with the Latin term “virgo”, meaning “maiden”. This meaning has been used for the name ever since. Popular in America since the mid 19th century; the first child born in America was Virginia Dare, in 1597. The state of Virginia was named as homage to the Virgin Queen, Elizabeth I. Author Virginia Woolf; tennis player Virginia Wade.