A "Rose" By Any Other Name ...

Our sweet little Emma Rose. This morning I've been thinking about names and if they really end up affecting one's personality or life in general. As I huffed and puffed my morning away on the ellipitcal machine, I looked up at one of the tv screens, which happened to be on CNN, and saw that the reporter's name was Richard "Dickie" somebody. Can't recall the last name now, but I think it was the nickname that threw me off.

This man, who had to be in his late 60's, early 70's, actually had them put "Dickie" up on that screen, for all the world to see. Dickie? Come on, now. I know "back in the day" there was absolutely nothing wrong with it. It was a name and nothing more. But people, the times they are a changin', and you have to go with the flow. It's no longer appropriate to name your son Dick or your daughter Gay. Sad, but true. My friend and I, upon seeing the nickname (did I mention it was on CNN - teehehe), couldn't help but giggle.

And it made me think of the process we went through to come up with Emma's name. Now, don't get me wrong, everyone. I don't want any messages from people upset that I'm making fun of a perfectly respectable name. My grandpa's name was Richard, and he went by Dick his whole life. Hence, the saga of choosing the name for our second born ...



I knew I wanted Emma for a first name. The Man had to be conviced of that one. But after meeting my great aunt, Emma Lou, she fell in love with him, and he with her. After that, it didn't take much convincing. He was totally into the idea of our daughter being Emma's namesake. The decision for a middle name was a little more difficult. We were so used to Aunt Emma's name, all we could think of to go with it was Lou. Neither of us were big on that, so we started thinking of ANYTHING else that possibly sounded good. It couldn't start with a vowel, so my middle name was out. We liked the idea of middle names being family names, but since the first name was a family name, we were okay with choosing something random that we both liked.

One evening we were with my parents over at my sister's house, and we were all trying to come up with different options that would fit.

Mom: Well, grandma's name is Margaret. You could use that.

Me: Please. I'm concerned enough as it is that she's going to think we've given her an old lady's name.

Dad: My grandmother's name is Zelema.

(That's right, it was actually suggested that we name her Emma Zelema)

Me: No response. (But probably a good roll of the eyes was directed toward him for that.)

After a few minutes of hysterical laughter, my sister decided to put in her two cents.

Sister: Since her first name is going to be after our great aunt, her middle name could be Ray, after our Great Uncle Ray. Emma Ray is cute. You could even spell it R-A-E if you wanted.

Me: Nice. So now we're choosing boys' names? Why don't I just name her after grandpa and she can be Emma Dick.

(Another bout of hysterical laughter)

Thanks to my better half's family, namely his Granddad Doug, we eventually settled on Rose for her middle name. I think it's beautiful. And so does everyone else. We still get compliments on her name, and sometimes her Grandma Darlin' can't help but call her Emma Rose instead of just using her first name. I think it's very sweet.



But back to my first question: Do our names really determine who we are or who we become; what our personality is like or how we act? I have to say no, sadly, they don't. My daughter with such a beautiful, elegent and sweet name as Emma Rose has proven that to me.

And if, by chance, I'm wrong, and our names do have some effect on our personalities, I think my daughter was misinformed. She must think she was named Emma Dick.


*** Note *** I hope you all know these stories are true, but written for your entertainment. My little Devil Child can also be very sweet and loving. I love her with all my heart and soul. She's just, shall I say, strong willed, and I love her more for it. She makes our life together fun, very intereting, and extremely hilarious. Mommy loves you very much, sweetheart.