MATHÚIN
WHAT’S IN A NAME
During research of my family’s genealogy, I came across the origins of our surname “McMahan”. Mathúin (pronounced MA-hoon) derives from an old Gaelic word, “mathghamhan”, meaning bear and our name evolved from that.
2015-2016
Print Design
Photoshop, Illustrator
FROM LONE STAR TO LAND OF SKY
You’re probably wondering, “What’s with the Armadillo?” For nearly a decade, I lived in southeast Texas. During that time I grew to love the Lone Star state, its unapologetic solitude and the animals that personify that. When I moved back to North Carolina and started to reflect back on that part of my life and all that I had learned during my stint there. The more I thought about it, the more I found the armadillo represents a tenacity to survive and the capacity to thrive.
AS BIG AS YOU FEEL
My true appreciation of the armadillo came from an experience I had camping in the Hill Country of central Texas beside the Guadalupe River. On this particular night, the air was thick with thunder and the nightmarish echoes of hysterical coyotes terrorizing cattle on the surrounding hillside. In the midst of the sounds of the wild already filling the night, came another noise. A rustling outside that grew closer and louder with every moment, until it was right outside the entrance of the tent. I imagined the figure of some man or beast that must have been ten, twelve feet tall judging by all the noise it was making. I shouted a warning before lunging out of the tent, armed as much as one can be in the dead of night. I saw nothing, but then the loud rustling started again. Now sounding like a tiny bulldozer breaking twigs and crushing leaves. I looked down to find an armadillo no bigger than a pot roast making all that noise. Shooing him away was pointless because he could care less that I was there. He went about his business searching for something in the ground no matter what else was happening around him.
Theodore Roosevelt said “Walk softly and carry a big stick”, but I think the armadillo has a better idea — stay focused and make as much noise as you can.
