“Fiddlydeedee,” Mom would often say with a smile when she disagreed with something or someone – when she really meant, “That’s ridiculous.” She wasn’t from the South and she wasn’t a brunette, but Mom loved Scarlett O’Hara, and she loved “Gone With the Wind.”

At 11 years old, Mom saw the movie “Gone With the Wind” for the first time. She was entranced and decided then and there that she would name her future daughter “Tara.” Another 20 or so years later, I was born.

Mom brought me to the theater to see the movie when I was 11 and soon after gave me a Scarlett O’Hara doll. I read the book by Margaret Mitchell some time in high school and when a fluffy flirtatious kitten entered our lives, we named her Scarlett. I showed the movie to my own kids when they each turned 11, but it wasn’t until my last birthday that I first visited Atlanta and visited the home of Margaret Mitchell, the American birthplace of my namesake.

We toured Margaret Mitchell’s apartment, heard stories about her life and stories behind the making of the movie. At the gift store, I couldn’t resist buying a few things. A magnet of Scarlett O’Hara now adorns my file cabinet. I have a coffee table book on the making of the movie and a new copy of the 1,037 page book. When will I read them? Soon. “After all, tomorrow is another day.”

Trip taken February 2015.