Some people name their kids after family members they love, others after supermodels they envy. Some people want their children to be unique so they name them after trees and cities. Josh and I both loved the name Austin and knew without a doubt that was going to be the name of our first son. For Josh, there wasn't any specific reason for it, but I had my reasons! I wanted a baby boy with spiky blonde hair and big blue eyes and every time I heard the name Austin, that's exactly what I pictured! However, although that was the dream, I knew deep down that my child would probably look like his Dad and have darker features with green or brown eyes. After all, aren't darker features supposed to be dominant? I was so surprised when I got the blonde baby of my dreams and I fall in love every time I look into those big blue eyes. He truly is an Austin. We decided to make his middle name Joshua, after his Dad. The reason for that is obvious. Josh is the most honorable, patient, loving man in the world and I couldn't think of anyone I would rather name my son after.
When I asked Josh's mom why she named him Joshua, she said it was because she loved the scripture by Joshua that read, "Choose you this day whom ye will serve, but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." She wanted a son who was strong and dedicated to the Lord, so what prophet better to name him after than the man who took over for Moses in leading the children of Israel into the promised land? What's interesting is Josh truly is a Joshua! He has all the qualities of his namesake.
Do you see the pattern here?
Then there's me. My parents named me Ashly after a character from a famous soap opera. Charming, right? My mom liked the character because she was blonde, bold, beautiful, intelligent, and strong. She always got what she wanted and everyone loved/envied her. My Dad had the same reasons for liking the name, but I think deep down he just thought she was hot. Men.... His only request was to make my name different than the average Ashley, so they dropped the E. It has been my trademark, and also a big annoyance in my life because nobody (including family members) can remember how to spell my name! Anyways, everywhere I go, people tell me that I am definitely an Ashly and their reasons are just like the character I was named after.
My middle name was my Mom's choice, and it has had great meaning throughout my life. She wanted my middle name to be Nicole because it means "The Conqueror." My Mom felt deep down that my life was not going to be easy and I needed a name that would give me the strength to overcome the challenges that life threw at me. My Dad's only request was once again, to remove the E. This confuses people even more than my first name! I even had an elementary school teacher once argue with me because I told her she spelled my name wrong and she disagreed! Really lady?
So Ashly Nicol it was. As I have gone through life, my Mom has used my name to remind me of who I am. When those mean girls in high school were making fun of me and I came home crying and wishing I was someone else, she reminded me that I am the conqueror and because of that I would get through this and come out an even stronger person. She was right. When that first college love dumped me, I called my Mom up on the phone, devastated that I wasn't going to marry him after all. She reminded me, again, that I am the conqueror and I would get through this pain and find someone else who was more worthy of my strong personality and intelligence. She was right again. I could hear my Mom's voice in my head again as I cried over miscarrying my baby and took comfort in the thought that I would get through this trial as I did all the others because I am Ashly, the conqueror.
I believe there is enough proof here to conclude that it is important to give your child a name with meaning. That name will go on to describe their character, personality, and hopefully give them an identity to help them in times of trouble and pain. I don't know what we will name our next baby, but you can bet that there will be a well thought out reason for it, whatever it may be.
During the miscarriage I felt like I needed a special trinket to remind me daily of who I am and to give me strength to get through that particularly painful trial, as well as all the other trials to follow. So I found this little company that sells hand stamped jewelry and immediately fell in love with this bracelet! Now, every day that I wear it, I am reminded of who I am and I am filled with strength and hope that I will always come out an even stronger, better woman than I was yesterday.
