A name is a powerful thing.
Chad and I spent hours and hours choosing the names of our kids. It took a lot of time, energy, and negotiations before we settled on what we considered the perfect name.
In the mind of our oldest, we failed miserably. Krissy has a "long name" and she HATES it. Truly hates it! Like she would rather have me cuss at her than call her by her legal name... seriously! She vows to change it as soon as she turns 18, and I will be surprised if she does not.
The funny thing is, we still love her name. I know you are very curious at this point as to what the "awful" name could be, but I would never disclose her legal name when it is truly a source of pain to her. Part of knowing, loving, and respecting Krissy is understanding that her name is Krissy.
With Joshua, it is the opposite. He is ALWAYS Joshua. Many times when I introduce him to people as Joshua they respond, "Hi Josh!" It totally cracks me up, because he is NOT josh. It is not a name he likes or responds too. Part of knowing, loving, and respecting Joshua is understanding that his name is Joshua.
I have often thought about how significant knowing a person's name is. Over the weekend, JOshua shared his thoughts about names.
Joshua said, "Mommy. Some people not know me, they call me Josh. I NOT Josh! I JOSHUA! Only Joshua! I not even 'ook 'ike Josh E Cook (the only Josh he knows)!"
Is he not so totally correct?!? When we do not know someone, we do not know their name. To really know someone's name is to begin to know their heart.
I so appreciate the wisdom my children share with me! They inspire me over and over again - to be more, do more, and love more. I am terrible with names! However, my three year old treasure has inspired me to try harder, because I want to be worthy of glimpsing inside the heart's of the people around me.
