What's your name?

We always feel that how did we get our name. What was the thought in our parents' mind that stirred them to name us with a specific name. When I sat with my friends, we raised a topic of names. Lot goes in to name someone, isnt it? Some are named after flower, some, after their grandmother or grandfather, some after victory, some after favourite goddess and so on. When everybody was telling the tales of their own life and how they ended up with that particular name, I was pretty amazed to tell mine too. French fries and Ice tea spiced with mint were there to make all of them listen with complete eagerness to my story. As I love telling tales laced with fictional themes, I am pretty sure that people will not go bored by listening to me. So here I am with my very own story

Story begins

The day was bright and happy. It was the month of October. Usually Chennai is known for its scorching sun and intense heat, Reema and Mahesh felt that it would rain any minute. Reema was happy and cheerful as she had seen enough of the heat. As she was carrying a tummy full baby of 8 months old, she wanted some weather change. Rain gods showed mercy and for an expecting mother and a full grown infant, it rained. The clouds came. It turned gloomy all over and it rained cats and dogs. In a few days, Reema and Mahesh were going to welcome their baby soon. But what about their two year old son? Was he equally excited? No he was not. He feared the competition that he would have to face as the newcomer would take far more attention than he. He was disappointed and was not at all ready to give the baby a warm welcome. But truth was truth and he was soon going to have a baby sister or brother to fight with him and laugh with him.

Thaiyamma returned after her morning walk. She was the one who acted as a midwife and handled all the deliveries in that particular street in Kanchipuram. Her name Thaiyamma came from the very fact that she gave the joy of motherhood to mother and child both as we all know that if mother gives birth to a child, child is more responsible for mother's rebirth. Hence, Thaiyamma emerged as a godmother to many mothers.

That day she was not feeling well. Even in that state, she came to have a look at Reema. Mahesh was on tour and had to go to Mumbai for a fortnight. Reema was with her 2 year old son Rishi. As soon as she saw Thaiyamma come to her home, she fetched a glass of water and gave it to her. Thaiyamma did not have child but treated every mother as her own daughter. She poured her love and joy in each and every household. Rishi sat in Thaiyamma's lap and was showing his drawings. The two enjoyed each other's company for a while when Thaiyamma saw couple of books with names. She asked if Reema and Mahesh has come up with any name for their new arrival. Reema smiled. She said that the search is on and would come up with a nice name soon. Reema gave Thaiyamma a cup of coffee and Thaiyamma left Reema's place joyfully. She checked Reema;s health and asked her to take rest. Reema felt at peace as Thaiyamma acted as a pillar of strength during this time.

Reema went back to her search. She checked lot of books. She liked some but curiosity to search more gripped her. As the days went by, the tension increased in her mind. She had to be ready with a name, she thought. She had scribbled few names in her diary. The names were Vidya, Sukanya and many others which she and Mahesh had equally liked.

 Reema loved to read books. That was the novelty which she always loved to invest on. After finishing the household chores, she returned to her book world. Rishi also took to reading because of her. That was the jolly good time she had when Mahesh left her with Rishi. She could splurge on books. Those days, Vikatan and Kumudam was in vogue. Every household had a pile of books which had lot of informative articles and many gossips related to political and film world.

One afternoon, after her daily routine of putting Rishi to bed after his school hours, she went to have a look at Kumudam, she read few articles and saw colourful pictures of actresses and actors. As she was flipping the pages, she saw Bhagyaraj and his wife with a babygirl. She was looking so innocent as she lay in their arms. She was tiny and neatly tucked with a white cloth. The interest to read increased in Reema's mind. Bhagyaraj and his wife were welcoming their daughter. The daughter's name was Saranya. A spark came over Reema's mind. As if the universe sent some hidden message to her, her eyes twinkled after reading that name. She spelled that name again and again. She was not aware of her senses but she was taking that name for more than 5 minutes. Rishi moved a little hearing his mother's soft whisper. As if the sign of the almighty, Rains came all of a sudden. Reema thought this is how it should be. I will name my daughter as Saranya. She quickly checked the meaning of the name. The first name of Goddess Durga. She will have lot of power and she will never fear of anything. She will ward off the evils and she will stand up for herself.

One month later

Thaiyamma sat with Reema and her new infant "Saranya". She was overjoyed by seeing the baby. The baby looked healthy and winked at her. Rishi sat in Mahesh's lap. All were looking beautiful. Thaiyamma thought, this is a perfect family. A picture perfect would be the right word.

 

This post is part of Project 365 daily post.

Whats your name? What is the meaning of your name? How did you get it?