Obaasan: Ah! Kawaii! (Cute)
Me: Arigatou. (Thank you)
Obassan: How old?
Me: 11 months
Obassan: What is her name?
Me: Her name is Nozomi.
Obassan (in shock and amazement): Japanese name!?! Is your husband Japanese?
Me: No, American.
Obassan: Does she have an American/English name?
Me: No, her name is Nozomi.
We get a lot of confused looks when we tell people our blue-eyed blonde haired baby is named Nozomi. Our families both thought it was a little strange. This past summer many people had a hard time remembering her name. Nearly everywhere we went, I explained that her name means "hope" and it's a popular Christian name in our congregation. This made people feel better, but a couple people asked us if we were going go call her Hope. Um, no her name is Nozomi.
Me: Her name is Nozomi.
Obassan (in shock and amazement): Japanese name!?! Is your husband Japanese?
Me: No, American.
Obassan: Does she have an American/English name?
Me: No, her name is Nozomi.
We get a lot of confused looks when we tell people our blue-eyed blonde haired baby is named Nozomi. Our families both thought it was a little strange. This past summer many people had a hard time remembering her name. Nearly everywhere we went, I explained that her name means "hope" and it's a popular Christian name in our congregation. This made people feel better, but a couple people asked us if we were going go call her Hope. Um, no her name is Nozomi.
You'd think as someone who grew up with a unique name (a name I constantly have to spell or pronounce for people) I'd want to save my daughter the trouble.
Names are important. Names tells stories. We liked her name and the meaning, but what we liked most of all is that it tells the story of a missionary family that had a baby in Japan. It tells the story of a little girl who will grow up to hopefully see the world a little differently and be a global citizen.
Names tells stories. The reason I love the Old Testament is because the names are all packed with meaning. I have my Friday Bible Class trained to ask what the names of people and places mean. The names add more meaning to the story. Eve means "living" and Adam means "from the earth". Isaac means "to laugh." In the book of Ruth, Naomi's sons Mahlon and Chilion's names mean "sickness and spent." They die within the first chapter. On the banks of a river, Jacob wrestles with God and is called Israel, one who struggles/wrestles with God, today a nation of people continue to be called Israelites.
Names tells stories. The reason I love the Old Testament is because the names are all packed with meaning. I have my Friday Bible Class trained to ask what the names of people and places mean. The names add more meaning to the story. Eve means "living" and Adam means "from the earth". Isaac means "to laugh." In the book of Ruth, Naomi's sons Mahlon and Chilion's names mean "sickness and spent." They die within the first chapter. On the banks of a river, Jacob wrestles with God and is called Israel, one who struggles/wrestles with God, today a nation of people continue to be called Israelites.
And of course, there is Jesus, which means, God saves.
It doesn't matter if you have a strange name or a super common name. God knows our names and has called each of us.
