Mira and her name

Don’t know whether it’s hip or romantic to decide one’s baby’s name less than a year after marriage but that’s exactly what Papa and I did!

We wanted a name that was short but impressive, simple but effective and modern but yet traditional. It didn’t take us too long to figure out that there was one name that fit all the requirements.

“Mira”.

But, it will be wrong to say that “Mira” was chosen merely for these attributes. “Mira” was a winner on another ground, it was a subset of our names – her mummy’s and papa’s names. And so, the decision was made – no matter when and no matter where, our baby if a girl, will be named “Mira”.

Our vision of “Mira” was also very beautiful.

We always thought of her as a nice, happy and a radiant girl. No, I never really imagined her very pretty but, charming yes. May be not very intelligent, but ambitious yes. Someone who would be sober during success, and perseverant during failures. Someone who would have the ability to move on, whenever life went through some rough patches Someone who would live life, care for her loved ones and pursue her passions.

Above all, I always imagined her as my best friend. Her mom’s best friend!

Though the name was tempting and the vision beautiful, it wasn’t put to use until around a year back when a small girl with puffy eyes, lovely hair and a loud wail fell on my lap and refused to let go of me since then.

It was also the day, when this long-held name got revealed to friends and family. I remember a sense of pride and an anticipation of appreciation in Papa’s voice, as he disclosed. We were confident that people would love it. In fact, love it instantly. They would be pleasantly surprised, congratulate us on getting it right, praise us in good measure and then one day, secretly name their daughter after Mira.

But, as they say, life is full of surprises, and at times some really unpleasant ones. The reactions were either negative, neutral or none at all. Some out rightly rejected it – found it too old and simple, some promised to help out with more options, some wondered about our creative abilities and some just switched over to talking about the weather! There was just a handful of people who liked it and must say, liked it a lot!

Though the criticism was substantial and overwhelming at times, Papa and I decided to hold on. After all, Mira had been in our minds for long, long before there was any sign of Mira herself - when just the thought of her could make me smile and long for having her in my arms one day.

While life has moved on and people have accepted Mira with her name, we have realized that its just Mira and Mira alone who can judge the appropriateness of her name. As we wait for the verdict to come in, we fondly see our little girl growing up – a thought shaping up into a person – a person who might be very different from our vision or expectations but whom we will always love and celebrate for she, just like her name will always be a part of us.