a Name is a Name ?

I’m thinking about all of my eight children and how we came to their names
The first one was after my father- there was much debate on the middle but I finally gave in and let Frank pick  it— that child was called by his middle name until around 16 or so- he decided to go by a nickname of his first name
Second son was named after one of my favorite soap opera characters- with a middle name I stole from a good friend!
Third was after my mother and her favorite movie- gone with the wind

Fourth was after my grandmother and a friend- but she was called by a name suggested by a neighborhood kid!
Fifth was just because I liked the name - his middle name was a last minute change after my brother

Number six and seven were in my back to basic and old fashioned simple names- with number six’s middle name after her sister- and in part number seven was influenced by a popular children’s train character
And actually number eight was named by her two oldest brothers- first name after one of said brothers- middle after other brother’s favorite band!

Not sure where people are getting their name choices from these days— it seems to be a mixture of older ones and unusual ones

It’s very strange how you hear a name you’re never heard before- not even sure how to spell it then bam it’s everywhere and with unnumbered ways to spell it

I don’t think people tend to name kids after people as much now a days-

I remember one of my friends didn’t name her baby for about a week

So does a good name bring success- does a hard to pronounce one cause a child problems or make it feel unique

I guess it can be a kindness at times to have a nickname- as they aren’t always a shortened version but more of what people think of once they know you

I wonder if it might have been a better idea to keep each child’s middle name blank letting them pick it out when they are older

My name was going to be Nora Ellen- a name I’ve often fancied would have made all the difference

So is a rose still a rose
Perhaps— but could it have been a tulip had it been allowed to open enough