Naming a brand new person is such an awesome privilege and responsibility. His name will become synonymous with his identity. Who she is. That collection of sounds that alert us to pay attention. The word said to him with affection by his friends and significant others. And when everything else has melted away, her name remains. Forever.
There is a certain element of ownership that comes with the duty of naming. Claiming this person is mine, belongs to me, to us. We try out names and tie them to our imaginings of our child as a newborn, our child in school, our child grown and in the world. We dream and research and explore, searching for just the right one. Then it is bestowed on baby and soon the name conjures up the image, the feeling, the essence of our child. The newborn is nameless no more. Claimed now. Mine. A sacred act.
21Moons 