Reading my dear friend Raj's DP on whats in a name prompted me to write this one... My birth and the subsequent few months were quite surprising I feel. My parents were told by the 'look' of it they should be expecting a girl child. Nice work by the relatives. I heard of some of them rubbing it in about the first born being a girl. Now my parents and me personally have no idea why having a female child is such matter of gossip!! So clearly expecting a female child my parents searched and found innumerable female names and not a single male name!! Then as fate would have it my mom and her cousin ( who too was expecting delivery around the same time)came across an obituary of a young girl whose 3 brothers had ceremoniously put it in huge print in the paper. Their names were Jeffy,Jebby and Jeffery. Somehow both my mom and her cousin liked the name Jeffy and both decided that if they have a male child in the future they would name him Jeffy. A few months later my mom's cousin delivered a healthy boy and promptly named hin Jeffy. Meanwhile a few days later I broke all familial myths and beliefs by being born a boy when the world (atleast my countryside) were expecting a girl. After dad and mom's initally joy they realised they didnt have a male name. On sudden thought they came up with Rahul, Rajeev and even (god forbid) Rintu !!!?? !! But then my mom recalled the name Jebby and I was eventually named so. My name from an obituary.... I still dont know what to make of it. I mean I am not offended.. not by a long shot but I am not pleasantly happy about it either... maybe because I still dont know at 23 what my name means. And also people never ever get it the first time. I say Jebby and they hear the initials J.B and then wait for me to give the rest!! While I had not much problems in Bahrain and kerala, bangalore just doesnt hear Jebby... the call me Mathew or Rajan depending on which part of my full name they like!! Ah at the end of the day does the name really matter?? /i am still trying to find out.
