Names

What’s in a name really? More than just the sounds of consonants and vowels, more than just the symbols drafted on paper, what is a name really? Are we defined by the name we are given, is our path set as to what someone might call us. I tend to think not, far more are we defined by the actions of our character and heart than that of the symbols used to describe us.

What is a name really? Is it just a collection of symbols to give a vocal calling, or is it more?
If I would choose a name for myself, what meaning would I strive to give it.

What would I want people to think when they hear my name. Khaleel - a name meaning friendship - sounds great. Or, is it more important to create the meaning I want people to see in me. When people hear my name, what meaning resonates for them.

Does my name bring up images of peace, maybe Ghandi, or of courage Toussaint L‘Ouverture? Do I resonate passion, say Eva Cassidy? How about an inspiration for generations - Che Guevara, Araminta Ross? Do the sounds of my phonetics conjure up images of innovation and invention, say maybe Rudolph Diesel or Thomas Edison.

How does my name resonate in those who chose to know me, what is it I represent? Perhaps a great thinker - Plato, Aristotle, or even Socrates? An artist, Picasso perhaps? Will my name stand up against injustice, George Washington Williams, or E.D. Morel? Will there be images of salute - Tommie Smith and John Carlos?

What symbols will be used to represent me in the future, will pictures paint my life, and will my name be used to justify greats acts of humanity, and death and destruction on an unimaginable scale, Yehoshua?

What is really in a name, what do the characters used to represent you really say about you. I can choose no other name than that which I was given. It is my responsibility to give meaning to my name, to create the images I most want to represent.

When people hear my name, what most do I want them to take with them Kindness, Compassion, Hope and Inspiration? I wish not to be renamed, I wish to stand as who I am, to create a legacy that is uniquely mine. If my identity must be hidden by a pseudo name then have I created a legacy that I can stand behind, that creates sense of purpose and meaning?

Call me for who I am, let my symbols be symbolic of what I am!