30 Days of Hearing -- What's In a Name?

This morning in Meeting for Worship, when it was time to share prayer concerns, there seemed to be an inordinate number of requests from a group as small as ours. It must have been a rough week for our little Friendly family of God. I was most moved though by some words of Homer Dorrell. Homer and his wife Gladys are two of the most faithful Friends I know. I can't think of a time when I've been to Meeting and they haven't been there. Homer is a very sweet man and he asked for prayer for his eyes, on which he had recently had surgery, and for continued prayers concerning his health. He also mentioned that he knew he was suffering from some dementia and thanked everyone for treating him so well. The part that touched me most, though, was when he said that because of his dementia, "I may forget your name, but I always remember you."

I smiled inside (and probably outside as well) when he said that.

I am blessed (I've decided took look at that way finally) with a name that gives people trouble. "Brent Bill" seems pretty straightforward to me. And I've never had any problem with keeping those two names in their correct order. But some others get it backwards "Bill Brent" or mangle it in other ways. My favorite is "Jay Brentabill." When I was a young person, I had one fellow who got so tired of trying to figure it out that he said he was just going to give up and call me "Charlie."

And, I have to say, it is pretty important to me that people get my name right. After all, it is a big part of who I am. And getting a person's name right is a mark of respect -- it says, "I care enough about you to learn your name."

Still, after hearing Homer this morning, I decided that, so long as Homer recognizes me as a friend of his, I don't care if he remembers my name or not. I'd much rather he remember me as a friendly face than keep my name straight. I'd rather he'd see me and smile with recognition rather than spend time searching his memory banks for a name he may or may not be able to dredge up

Besides, there is One who knows my name and who will never forget it -- or me. And He is watching over both Homer and me.

-- Brent