Why Belle Mae?
Well, since the early-1970's, I often thought about having a farm. What I wanted to do and why, but I never considered the name of my imaginary farm until it started to become a reality. I would think of a name and repeat it out loud to see how it sounded. Nothing really sounded right. I kept returning to the idea of family names. My sister had been working on our family tree and she suggested the maiden name of our great grandmother, "Ellenwood". I loved the sound and feel of the name, but I never knew this woman. I felt no connection to her. I only knew my maternal grandmother.
Then one day, Bell Mae popped into my head. My mother's middle name was "Mae", and her mother's middle name was "Bell". Mae Bell sounded like a pet cow's name, but Bell Mae had a beautiful ring to it. Visually Bell Mae looked lack luster. By adding the "e" to Bell, it became the French word for beautiful.
And, the Portuguese word for mother is Mae. A grandmother Belle and a mother Mae became Beautiful Mother. What better name for my farm than Belle Mae.
And, that is what's in the name!
Well, since the early-1970's, I often thought about having a farm. What I wanted to do and why, but I never considered the name of my imaginary farm until it started to become a reality. I would think of a name and repeat it out loud to see how it sounded. Nothing really sounded right. I kept returning to the idea of family names. My sister had been working on our family tree and she suggested the maiden name of our great grandmother, "Ellenwood". I loved the sound and feel of the name, but I never knew this woman. I felt no connection to her. I only knew my maternal grandmother.
Then one day, Bell Mae popped into my head. My mother's middle name was "Mae", and her mother's middle name was "Bell". Mae Bell sounded like a pet cow's name, but Bell Mae had a beautiful ring to it. Visually Bell Mae looked lack luster. By adding the "e" to Bell, it became the French word for beautiful.
And, the Portuguese word for mother is Mae. A grandmother Belle and a mother Mae became Beautiful Mother. What better name for my farm than Belle Mae.
And, that is what's in the name!