V’s Views: Why I choose to tell people’s stories

By Vanesa Brashier

One of my earliest memories as a child was when I was 7 years old or so. My paternal grandmother, Ollie Brashier, had given me and my sisters bottles of cologne for Christmas. Each type of cologne was based on a personality type.

I don’t recall what my sisters were given but if I had to guess my sister, Angie, probably got one named Angelic because it would fit her personality, and my sister, Stephanie, who is now a Pentecostal preacher’s wife, probably got one named for her zany and funny personality. Mine was named Inquisitive.

Even though I like to imagine I had an extensive vocabulary for a 7-year-old child, I was unfamiliar with the word, so I began to hammer my grandmother with questions about why she had chosen one for me with such a weird name.

I remember asking her, “Grandma, what does this mean? How do you say this? Why did you choose this one for me?”

A little exasperated with my rapid-fire questions, she looked down at me and said, “That’s why.”

Then she explained that “inquisitive” meant I asked a lot of questions. The name obviously fit then and still does.

People sometimes ask me why I chose to be a journalist. After all, the pay is not the greatest and the hours are challenging. The reward is I get to learn about people.

Of all the people-centered businesses in the world, I chose this one. I love learning about people, finding out why they became the people they are today and how they overcame challenges. Everyone has an interesting story to tell, I believe, and I want to share those stories with others.

You just have to ask the right questions.

If you have a story idea, I would love to hear from you. Drop me an email at editor@bluebonnetnews.com or call 936-346-1051.