The sun sets on another day…
I am thankful today for those people who are around me. As I worked on truly mindless yet fulfilling tasks today I felt good about life and considered one of the people I talked to today. Young and patient, he has a rather unique name that I think I purposefully mispronounced at least 10 ways today just to be funny. He is a good sport, and took it all in stride but it made me consider how our parents give us these names, and how our name either does or does not drive who we are in life. I consider one side where Shakespeare says:
“What’s in a name? that which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet; So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d, Retain that dear perfection which he owes without that title”
As Shakespeare has said, our name does not define us, we are defined by who we are and what we do in life. We can be perfect or imperfect based solely on how we react to our day, how people see us, and the lessons we leave to those around us.
But wait, how about those times where our name forces us down a separate path. What if our name brings out something that makes us uncomfortable, or someone uses our name against us. It is those times that we see our inner spirit either rise or fall to the occasion. We can be like the young man today and take it all in stride, or take it harder and stew about something that really does not matter.
What I am saying is easy, those people you touch today will not always remember your name. Those people you stop to help or work with or meet will not think about Fred, or Sam, or Sally. Instead they will remember that guy or girl that went the extra mile to make their day a better day, and they will remember your smile, your passion, your perseverance, and your action. If they remember all of that, perhaps they will remember your name, but I for one would rather be remembered for what I did, how I did it, the promises I kept, the way I loved, the way I laughed, the way I lived, the way I tried and did not give up, or the way I changed to make the world a better place, than ever by just my name. So to our young man, good job, keep your life straight, love life every day, and be who you are always.