Names Hold the Beginning

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Genesis 1:1

On January 11, 1996, my mother changed her last name. That was the beginning of twenty years and counting. 

On July 12, 2000, my parents gave me the name 'Jullene.' That was the beginning of much mispronunciation, repeating, and the reflexive response to any name beginning with 'Jul-'.

The morning of October 4, 2004, I learned the name of my baby brother and held him in my arms for the first time. That was the beginning of the sacred solidarity of my room, many many petty arguments, and the varying conditions of our nonverbal truce.

Names are essential parts of many turning points in my life, and the fact that they are always the beginning of something- for better or worse, this fact holds true in more areas besides my family. When a name becomes known, the potential it holds is so much more than anyone could ever know.