My daughter is named after a family friend of her father's who passed away in her youth. Apparently she was a bright and beautiful spirit. Her tragic death at the age of 17 came when two of her siblings and her uncle were in a plane that crashed into the Sierra Nevada mountains. Her name was Sierra. Now my daughter's name is Sierra.
I was so moved by the sad story that I never thought to probe further. Why did my husband select that name? I mean, yes she was a good person and he knew her well, but why name his daughter after her?
Recently I learned that this innocent young and lovely Sierra was also his first big crush and his first kiss. Hmm... I had no idea. I felt a little betrayed and naive - like maybe I should have looked into this naming thing a little more.
I would have named her Dominique or Matilde or something, really anything else. I wasn't keen on the name Sierra, though I have grown to love it as a part of my daughter.
Moms, dads - please consider your motivations. Also, I urge you not to name just for memorial's sake. There are lots of ways to honor the dead. When picking out your child's forever name don't feel obligated to honor anyone - you could end up with a Betty Lou Gertrude. Don't get pathetically sappy about meaning - you could end up with Amethyst Star.
Just pick something that sounds right and seems to fit. Keep it cool yet timeless, brass yet kosher. Make sure to spell it right, keeping in mind that a ghetto name statistically dooms your child to a crap career and a lifetime of embarrassing corrections.
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