What’s in a Name

"what's in a name? that which we call a rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet.." so shakespeare wrote in "romeo & juliet". hmm. there may be a grain of truth in this statement. but i can't say i fully agree with it..

for me, names are important. and by names, i mean not only our real names (the ones given to us by our parents at birth); but more importantly, our nicknames - the ones we choose for ourselves. what, indeed, is in a name?

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1. giving a name to something gives you authority over it. read the Bible. in genesis, when God made man, He allowed him to name the animals (gen 2:19).. giving man authority over the other creatures. i guess by the same token, this is why our parents are the ones who give us our names at birth.

conversely, we find it hard to control something we cannot attach a name to. that is why we hear phrases like "nameless terror" or "faceless enemy" or even that famous harry potter villain, "he-who-must-not-be-named". being able to name and identify one's fear is already halfway through getting over it.

2. a person's name describes him. you can tell a lot about a person based on his names.

in the old testament are found dozens of names for God. since the people then were not allowed to say or even write “YAHWEH,” they came up with names for Him: Jehovah-Jireh (the God Who provides); El-Gabor (Mighty God), Jehovah-Rophe (the God Who heals) and others.

but this does not only apply to God. when you think about it, you can still find out a lot of info about a person just by analyzing his name. from one's real name, you can probably deduce something about his parents. is he a junior? the third? the fourth? hmm. maybe he comes from a proud family. is his name taken from the Bible? maybe his parents are God-fearing.

but there's more to discover from a person's nickname. what do his friends call him? is it a funny-sounding name? is there a story behind it? does he get irritated when friends call him such? what name does he want people to call him? just by answering these questions, one can find out a lot of things about a person.

3. a person's name links him to others. people do not have just *one* name. they are called various names.. depending on who they are with.

ever notice how, when you are newly acquainted with somebody, he will give you his formal name? then, as time goes by and you become closer to that person, you’d be allowed to call him by the ‘nickname’ his friends call him. of course, if eventually, you become *really close* to this person, then perhaps you’d have a special name for him.. and he would have a special name for you as well.

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i have lots of names. my students call me "ma'am roxy" or "ma'am v". my parents call me "selle," and so do some of my other relatives. my ninang and two cousins call me "ten". some of my friends teasingly call me "selya" or “rosie.” some choirmates call me "rokel" while most others call me "rox".

so what's in a name? nothing and everything, at the same time. it can be as trivial or as priceless as you want it to be. it can say as much or as little about you as you wish. it can be meaningful or worthless.. depending on the value you place in it.

some time ago, i lost someone very dear to me. and along with the loss was the pain i felt for losing my “special name.” it hurt to think that from now on, i would never hear *that name* again. sure, call me overly sentimental.. but i felt really bad. i not only lost a loved one.. i literally lost a part of myself, too. i lost my favorite name.

but i find consolation in isa 49:16 “see, i have engraved your name in the palm of my hands..” the Lord has written *my name* in His hands! i may have lost a special name; but it gives me great relief to know that i will never be nameless. He will always know me.. He will always set me apart from all the rest.

so i may not have chosen my birth name. i may not “fit” the name my parents gave me (i *do not* look like a rose, haha). i may not be able to get back that special name that i lost ( though i’m still keeping and open mind and heart about that, hehe Ü) but i know that i can at least do my best to live up to the name the Lord bestowed on me - Roselle: Child of God.

we are all His children. let’s live up to our names. it’s the least we could do for Him :)