Thursday, November 19, 2009

Legacy




What's in a name?  Sares is exploring that very question in her blog, LoveLeigh Treasures and others.  She is hosting a most interesting "blog party today.  Stop by, the story of her nickname is charming and I can relate as I have a nickname only my grandfather calls me, but I choose not to discuss it today because I could never, ever figure out how it is spelled . . . it is heavy with Polish sounds and entanglements . . . bit I do love it so. 

What's in a name?  I have long hoped that spirit and power can be in a name.  That is what inspired us to name our daughter, Sarah Caroline.

Sarah is a common enough name and that commonness, itself, may have put us off that name normally.  But we knew from the start that our daughter would need the power and the spirit of her new family and we tried to vest that within her by giving her this name.

Sarah was the name of my great-grandmother, a saint of a woman, feminine as the most delicate lace, but strong as a mule.  She came here, on her own, from Poland, as a teenage girl, not knowing a soul in this new world.  She set about making a life for herself . . . and she did . . . and she also created the most beautiful woman I have ever known, my grandmother who, in turn, created my mother.  How could I not link my daughter to my great grandmother's incredible legacy?

Caroline was my husband's mother, the happiest soul I was ever lucky enough to know.  I only knew her for a short time, for she died rather abruptly before my husband and I were married.  I grieved as if she were my own mother because she had been such a spiritual mother to me.  I miss her laughing spirit each and every day, but am grateful for the time I did know her and especially for the man she raised, the man who is now my husband and the best father I could have ever dreamed of for my children.  We made "Caroline" my daughter's middle name for we wanted to link my daughter with her grandmother forevermore despite Sarah never having spoken with her.

So my daughter carries with her the name of her brave, immigrant great-great grandmother who came to this country from her eastern European country in search of a better life.  Despite being separated by several generations, they share that bond.  My daughter, too, came here from an eastern European country when we adopted her and brought her home to be part of our family.  She, too, comes to the new world in search of a better life.

And we paired her first name with a middle name of a woman whom she should have met, had fate not been quite so cruel.  With this middle name, our daughter will be ever mindful of the wonderful woman who would have been her "grandma." 

My daughter is six years old now, but oh so old and oh so young for the time she spent as an orphan.  I pray that she has the power and the spirit to continue in the legacy of strength and love for which she has been named.






13 comments:

td_junkie said...

What a beautiful post. I love your naming tradition.

Mollye said...

Oh what a beautiful and poignant story. Your Sarah will walk tall, and do great things because she has such a wonderful heritage and because of wise and loving parents. Have a wonderful day, Mollye

Vicki said...

Such a lovely post! Wonderful names you have chosen for your sweet daughter! Her names have such a strong family history that I know she will always enjoy her names and the story behind them. Blessings to you! Vicki

Marsha @ Tattered Chick said...

What a lovely post and both names are just beautiful.

Thank you for stopping by today!

Hugs,
Marsha

Tara said...

How beautiful that your daughter will continue the carry names of such importance. She will come to cherish that as she gets older. She looks adorable in her little red hat and scarf too! Thank you so much for sharing your daughter's story and have a glorious day!

Tricia said...

What a wonderful legacy you are establishing for your daughter. Such a marvelous way to choose names. I know that she will cherish the reason that you chose what you did. Your daughter is beautiful.

I, too, chose my son's name in that way - his middle name is Keith, after my dad. My dad had 4 Keiths named after him. I knew the "Keith" part way before I chose his first name. My dad passed away way too soon. But we are trying to carry on his legacy of kindness, compassion and love.

I am wondering where you adopted your daughter from. We almost adopted a boy from Russia - long story, but I am a huge lover of the Russian people.

I'm glad you stopped by my blog. Sorry I changed my music :-), but glad you found it down below. Never fear, after Christmas, those songs will move back to the top. Have a wonderful week.

Smiles,
Tricia

LemonyRenee' said...

Tricia -- We adopted Sarah from the eastern side of Ukraine which still identifies strongly with Russia. They even speak Russian rather than Ukrainian there.

Four Keiths? All sons, you mean? Or Keiths as in middle names, too. Family history is so interesting. Thanks for stopping by and for the reassurance about your lovely music. :)

Widge said...

wow what a great legacy. And such a strong but beautiful name too.

we named our last daughter after all of her great- grandmothers. Ruby (after my husbands Nana) Margaret (my Nana) Jean (we each have a Nana named Jean so it worked out perfectly. I love telling people that. so special :)

Ginger said...

What a beautiful legacy you have given your daughter. Lovely post.
Thanks for stopping by mine. The picture I posted on my Moms story is not her, I didn't have a picture of her readily available. Sorry I mislead my readers.

Ginger

Jodie (everything vintage) said...

What a beautiful post!
You have such a giving heart to give your life to another child in need of a family...she is beautiful. I love the photo of her looking small compared to the giant structures she is looking at, knowing that she is not small at all inside.
Truly a beautiful & meaningful post~
everything vintage

The Dayles said...

Sarah is a very lucky little girl. We miss you you know where!

Ginger said...

What a lovely story. Sounds like she will go far with such wonderful parents to guide her.

Ginger

Unknown said...

Renee' I don't know how I missed visiting you on the day of the party!

What a beautiful and inspirational story of some wonderful women. My mom's side is Polish too, so I can relate to some of what you're talking about! Strong, yet so feminine and loving.

I love the story of how you came to name your daughter . . . how lucky you all are to have each other!

Hugs,
Teresa

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