What's in a name ?

I have been posted in the OPD(out patient department) for well over six months now and one thing I like is, calling people's names out loud as I sent them to their designated rooms.  Unlike in the inpatients ( i.e. admitted patients) where I usually refer patients by their bed number. So I have come across a cornucopia of names since then.Some name's are intriguing and interesting and some outright puerile and funny.

  Our name's are something that we all identify ourselves with. It's ours and ours alone. It's more than an identity. But what happens when your parents who are supposed to give you names ,bungle up.I mean just imagine if your name is the butt end of everyone's jokes.

I recently came across a name called 'Awake'. Man! imagine that.By the way, who names their kids Awake.  And another kid named 'Frooty '. Yea right! I had actually asked the mother and she confirmed that it's the official name. Sometimes I wonder what were the parents thinking while naming their children.It is a heavy responsibility,and it's repercussions are felt throughout the child's life. I can well imagine the years of teasing and harrying these kids might have to face. Then there are names which are exquisite and recherche` that roll from your tongue, effortlessly and fluently with poetic grace.

On the other hand take my name for example. It's ,Manivarnan Chinnathambi '. Anyone mentioned tongue twisters. Yea try saying my name slowly at first and increase the speed as you go. That'll give you a kick.When people hear my name for the first time , almost every time I'm asked to repeat my name. So there I go gracefully obliging them by repeating my name again slooowly. Then the next question that immediately follows is ,"where are you from?". Actually, I'm from the planet 'Kriptine ' part of the ' Nebula Blue galaxy' ' the planet adjacent to ' Krypton ' (Superman's planet.)

Another thing I come across ,when I tell my name,is that I get to hear an assortment of names as I see people try miserably to get my whole name right in the first go. It's more like a polite name calling. I remember being called 'Manivarium' by a friend as she attempted to speak my name.( I don't fault her though , she is an 'angrez',read British, after all.) Then there is 'Maniva' and my all time favourite is "Manivarachitta  blblba what ... Could you repeat that again."

My 22 alphabets name sometimes runs out of boxes in forms so I always count the boxes before filling them up ,you can't go asking for extra boxes in a form now.Can you? It's even bigger pain if there's a straight line in the name column of a form. On a straight line I go all bold and nice with the first part of my name . Then on coming to second half I realize I am running out of space. So I cramp the letters so closely, they are almost jam packed. It reminds me of the Indian Railways; wherein the first  of my name is like like A/C coach all spacious and beautiful and the second half like the general coach with bodies all cramped together and an arm here and a leg there poking out from the windows.

So for practical purposes I use the name ' Mani ',usually for non official and informal situations. However even then too people write my name as 'Manny ' ,Money and 'Moni' but rarely do they write 'Mani'.So at the end of the day I have come to realize and accept that my name's distortion is here to stay ,maybe will be remain so in the future too.Like the lines from Shakespeare's famous play 'Romeo and Juliet' ,in which Juliet Capulet speaks the following lines to Romeo Montague .
"What’s in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes       
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name...."
So ultimately whether I am called 'Manivarium or Manny or Money it really doesn't matter because who I am as a person will not change with the names that I am called. So all you out there, if people don't call your name correctly, just chill; and join the club of people who oft repeateth Juliet's question"What's in a name ?"

P.S. : So dear readers , How's your experience with your names?