Grace Garden Preschool

There’s a scene in the tragic Romeo and Juliet where the lovesick girl tells her guy that a name isn’t really important. It’s love that counts, she insists. 

Hey there, Juliet, you want to know what’s in a name?

A whole lot.

Just consider all the thought and energy Beyonce and Jay-Z put into naming their baby. The music super stars, as you probably have heard, welcomed their little girl - Blue Ivy Carter - last week. At first glance, it seems a bit strange, even by Hollywood standards, but rest assured, there was a method to their madness.  After all, Jay-Z has released three albums with "blue" in their titles: "The Blueprint," "The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse," and "The Blueprint 3.” Ivy is a derivative of the Roman numeral IV and the number 4, which is a predominant symbol of the couple’s relationship.  Carter, by the way, is Jay-Z’s last name.

Whew. Who knew so much went into naming a child?

You did. So did I. As expectant parents, we spend all kinds of time picking out names.  Ask the new mothers around Grace Garden – more this year than any year I can recall since the school began, by the way – and they’ll tell you that they carefully chose the names for their babies. A name is a gift that lasts a lifetime, a way to identify your child wherever he or she goes.  As parents, we want to give our children names with substance, names they’ll be proud of throughout their lives. We don’t take it lightly.

I remember when deciding on my daughter’s name, for example, I considered many, many factors. The spelling of it, the way it sounded with our last name, its meaning, the myriad ways kids might make fun of it. Her first name was suggested by my mother; her middle name is the same as my mother’s.

When I hear your children’s names called out in the halls of Grace Garden, I am reminded how much they are loved by you, their wonderful parents. You put your hearts and souls into giving them names they’ll be proud of their entire lives.  And as they learn to spell and write their own names, you can already feel their pride. It’s the pride that comes with knowing that they are unique and special and loved for exactly who they are.

With much fondness,
Kym