my name is dulcinea!

tonight i went to see my friend’s [show-stealing ;)] performance in ‘man of la mancha’. i’m pretty sure the last time i read the book or saw the play was for 9th grade spanish, so i had only a very vague recollection of the story going in. it’s funny how much more of an impact something can have when you’re not required to do it for a grade. there were so many awesome spiritual analogies and applications that i could spend at least a whole month going through them all, but i’ll just start with the one that struck me the most.

in the story, there is a less-than wholesome barmaid named aldonza. the men want her only for what she can offer them, and while she largely rejects their advances, it is clear that she has come to see herself as nothing more than a lowly “kitchen scullion”.

then don quixote enters the picture.

upon meeting her, he refers to her as a “sweet lady ... fair virgin” and insists on calling her dulcinea. “i have sought thee, sung thee, dreamed thee ... and the world shall know thy glory.” later on, quixote’s squire addresses her as a “most lovely sovereign and highborn lady ... fairest of the fair, purest of the pure, incomparable dulcinea.” she cannot fathom why he would ever say these things about her, to which the squire replies, “knights have their own language for everything ... and it’s better not to ask questions. it only gets you into trouble.” over time, aldonza begins to accept and step into her identity as dulcinea. but then some men take advantage of her and she slips back into seeing herself as nothing more than a “kitchen slut, reeking of sweat, born on a dung heap to die on a dung heap.” she would rather hold on to her anger than open herself up to the pain of tenderness. “i’m only aldonza the whore.” but don quixote is unrelenting. “now and forever you are milady, dulcinea.” in the end, she cannot deny the power of the things that he has spoken over her life. she is asked, “is it so important?”

“everything. my whole life. you spoke to me. and everything was ... different.”

someone refers to her as aldonza and she corrects them. “my name is dulcinea.”

that is how it is for us. we are nothing more than lowly kitchen scullions.

then God enters the picture.

He calls us lovely, sovereign, highborn, fair, pure and incomparable. He gives us a new name.

never again will you be called “the forsaken city” or “the desolate land.” your new name will be “the city of God’s delight” and “the bride of God,” for the Lord delights in you and will claim you as His bride. (isaiah 62:4)

we can try and deny that those things are true, but He has a language all His own and arguing with God only gets us into trouble. as you begin to accept and step into your identity in Christ, don’t expect it to come without contention. that is when you must cling to it all the more. let go of your anger over past hurts and open your heart to the possibility of a love greater than you’ve ever known. God will be unrelenting in His pursuit, until you are able to fully accept that what He says is true. when that happens, your whole life will be changed and you can proudly proclaim ...

my name is dulcinea!