Cecilia

And finally, after patiently waiting for friends and family to have their visits, the co-directors of this project were able to meet and discuss the last name without committee. Grandmother was involved as honorary co-director. We went through several names, spent time looking through a computer for an exhaustive list of names prepared three months ago (couldn't find it), ambivalated for awhile between two names, looked up the Latin meanings and read biographies of the eponymous saints and decided up on Cecilia. A noble Roman lady converted with her husband and his brother to the Christian faith, and tortured by other noble Romans because that's how humans treat humans. First they boiled her alive - that didn't persuade her. Then an executioner tried to cut off her head. After three attempts failed to convince her of the error of her ways, the executioner ran off (to San Francisco where he started a band called Heavens to Murgatroyd, experienced a brief bout of popularity at the Fillmore West, and then married the drummer, moved up to Sonoma and learned how to grow grapes). Getting her head nearly hacked off really slowed Cecelia down - for three days she lay around with family and friends, opening and closing her eyes. Some say she was singing a song. After three days she died and went to heaven. Then she became the patron saint of musicians.

Somehow all these hagiographies begin to sound like songs by Leonard Cohen or Bob Dylan. Mabye that's where they got their material. Nice Jewish boys raiding the hagiography index. Makes sense.

At any rate, we like the name - it didn't come to us easily like Evelyn did (I woke up one morning about a month ago and said "Evelyn." Not out of a dream, just out of my mouth.) It didn't come from family like Jessie (a shout-out and tribute to my sweet maternal grandmother who cooked lunch for me every Sunday during my many college years). But it did come finally, and now we have three girls with three names.

That's a beginning.

Oh, by the way, I have posted a picture of Cecilia's foot because she is wearing a CPAP mask and no girl wants her picture posted wearing a CPAP mask. It makes you look like a space invader.