Names/Psychology

The power of words has been tested since the beginning of time. God said, "Let there be light" and there was light. We can speak many things into existence. I admit, I'm not the best at using words, but when they are used properly, one can do powerful things. Names are also words, and these too have great meaning.

In many ways, our names define us. For example, my name is Jade, which is defined as a precious green stone or gem (other definitions, I'm forgetting at the moment). When others define me, they say that I'm pretty reliable, I don't waver easily, I tend to stay calm when others are shaken up. I'm also reliable, sometimes stubborn (or a jerk, depending on who you talk to), and wise (because rocks are old and if they were animate, they would be wise) like a rock. And some would also say that I'm cool as a cuucumber, which is green :) I think that the name, Jade, suits me well.

Knowing the meaning of my American name got me curious to know what people are calling me in Mali, when they call out Djeneba. I haven't find out much, except that it's derived from Zenab, the name of the prophet Mohammed's daughter. I can only assume that she was a good woman, considering every other woman in Mali has this name. And when I think of all of the Djeneba's I know, I like them all.

Some other names that I've found the definitions for are Abdoulaye, Moussa, Aminata. Abdoulaye means "Servant of God," and when I think of my friends named so, I can honestly say that they are helpful and kind people. Moussa is the arabic name for Moses. Moussa was a leader, strong, wise, reliable and someone liked by the people. When I think about Moussa, the pharmacist in my family, I can say that this fits him perfectly, hence he is called as such. Next is Aminata, this was the name of prophet Mohammed's mother. In the Koran, it says that a son should kiss his mother many times more than his father. I can only imagine that Mohammed was thinking of his own mother when he wrote this, so it must be a good name.

There are a couple more names that I know, but I'll spare the reader. The point I'm trying to make is that names are important and we should all know what we're being called out to be. What is out Manifesto Destin. It's really cool, at least when I think about it.