Tuesday, March 02, 2010

All In A Name

I met someone today who has an impossible name. I'd thought that Faith, Grace and Hope would be difficult names. To be named after a characteristic, after a manner of being, yikes. Can you imagine Faith attending an Athiests Annonymous meeting or 'Grace' stubbing her toe and cursing a blue streek, or someone named 'Hope' not buying a lottery ticket?

Dave.

Now there's a good steady name.

Not fancy.

Kind of solid.

Someone looked it up and said that it means, 'beloved'.

Please.

Maybe to ancient Hebrews 'David' meant something other than 'that guy over there' - but now, trust me, 'Dave' simply means 'Dave'.

And that's what I like about it.

But today I spoke on the phone with a woman named Mercy. Mercy!! And she works in the field of disability. Could you imagine what she's got to live up to? Mercy can't be impatient. Mercy can't be in a rush. Mercy has got to always be, well, full of mercy.

After we discussed what needed to be discussed, I said to her, 'It must be tough to have a name like Mercy and do what you do."

She paused and said, 'A lot of people kind of make fun of my name. They say what you say, the demand on me is high. But for me, it's easy, because when someone calls my name, I know immediately what is wanted from me."

5 comments:

Kris S. said...

I know a woman named Patience. Not entirely accurate. That would, admittedly, be a HARD name to live up to.

Kristin said...

She sounds like she is a very special person.

FridaWrites said...

My high school had someone named Chastity. Prudence might also be difficult. I've known Graces and Hopes, and they've lived up to their names.

Anonymous said...

I'm a Registered Social Worker with the name, Charity. I used to get mildly annoyed by the endless amounts of jokes or comments about my particular situation. Now, I just try to remember how lucky I am to get to talk to so many people in any given week.

Shan said...

I know of someone whose surname is "Amiable".