My unique gift.

 

"As I mentioned at the beginning, it was on that Wednesday afternoon in 1972 that I made my first appearance in this world. Beginning this new life, my first breath was taken as an incomplete baby. I was born with the name Tracy Gillespie.

There was a man in that room awaiting my arrival. As soon as he laid eyes on me, the first words he ever spoke to me were, "Look at my new Baby Blue Jay!" That comment completed who I was to be known as.

This man gave me my very first gift. He gave me my middle name. I became Tracy Jay Gillespie.

This gift came from a man whom I would learn to love deeply, the man for whom I would have immense respect, the only man I would ever look up to – the man I would soon be calling my Grandpa.

When I was born, I was breech. I was told that I came out shoulder first, and the umbilical cord was wrapped around my neck. I was blue when I was born, and that's why Grandpa called me a Baby Blue Jay.

Not only was I born without a fully completed name, but I was also born into a world where I would never experience a safe and secure home. I was born to be put on the path of homelessness.

I began migrating through my life, experiencing things that kept me on that homeless path. I began to let my imagination wander freely, and it started to grow and expand. My out-of-the-box thinking process, looking for answers and solutions, also magnified.

It took me forty-six and a half years to start putting things together, and finally, I began to figure out who I was.

The Blue Jay is one of our largest, loudest, and boldest songbirds. The intelligence of a Blue Jay is among the highest of songbirds. The Blue Jay is the most recognizable songbird in America.

The Blue Jay is loyal and protective of its family. Blue Jays protect each other with their loud screams. They start life off with some dark feathers, which is why they have a black brindle on their head.

The more that I learned about the Blue Jay, the more I started understanding its complexity. Things really started to come together. I couldn't help but wonder if this was the real reason Grandpa gave me such a gift.

When you see a Blue Jay, the biblical meaning is to start communicating well, be persistent, and plan for the future.

A Blue Jay spirit animal encourages you to speak your mind and not keep things bottled up. It means to fight not just for yourself but for others.

Not only did Grandpa see that Baby Blue Jay on February 9th, 1972, but he also had to know my true calling. What I thought was the gift of a middle name was so much more than that.

My middle name is what gives me the confidence, strength, and courage to do what I do. When Grandpa completed who I was to be known as, he started who and what I have become.

He gave the world his Advocate!