While sitting on the porch, pondering what baby girl names would be perfect for her very pregnant belly, my mother, being neither landscaper nor planter, realized that her mind seemed to always wander towards flowers. She came up with the usual: Lily, Lavender, Rose, Jasmine, Daisy, and Holly. Deciding to put her mind to the test, she went to the store and grabbed a seed packet of each flower to grow. In doing so, she came across a unique flower called Dahlia. She left with a triumphant excitement and headed home home. She then proceeded to dig a hole, pour the seeds in carefully side by side, and made sure to water them every day. As time passed and the flowers grew, it seemed they were all on a race and the Dahlias were determined to overcome the rest. The stems of that gorgeous flower shot up and the bulbs exploded with color. Beautiful exotic petals of wine red, creamy lavender, and sunshine yellow appeared to glow separately from all the other flowers. The wild nature of the Dahlias seemed to deliver feelings of poise and grace as well as life and passion. My mother saw this as a sign from up above and immediately decided this was indeed the perfect name. With a few tweaks to the spelling, my name was finally complete and ready to use.

After cautiously cutting the flowers away from the rest and moving them to a crystal vase, my father walked to his car as the life in his hands basked in the warm rays of the sun, drove to the hospital, and was finally ready to welcome his first baby daughter with her flower.