I want to share a little story about my name, Harumi. Haru (春) means spring and Mi (美) means beauty, although my dad used to say that my name meant bright spring.
Do you think the meaning of a name influences personality? I do. As a child, I was told that it suited me, that I was cheerful and fresh like spring. That was always my favorite season of the year.
But I almost had a very different name. My dad told me that I was almost called Naoko, which means obedient child. I’m sure after seeing how terrible and naughty I was as a child, he regretted not having used that name on more than one occasion. But what happened that made me end up being called Harumi and not Naoko? I’ll tell you now.
My father, Don Jorge, was a very gallant man when he was young, and had four wives during his life. He always longed to have a daughter. It was one of his dreams and even many years before I was born, he already had the perfect name for his daughter, she would be called Harumi.
He married for the first time to a girl he was very much in love with, but unfortunately they were unable to have children. Some time later he would meet the mother of his firstborn, my brother Cristian. A few years later he remarried and had two sons, William and Jorge, although over time he also separated from his third wife. His children were already adults when he met my mother. At first it did not occur to him to fall in love because of the big age difference, but fate had other plans and he ended up marrying her. So the dream of having his daughter was reborn.
When my mom got pregnant for the first time, my dad was very sure it would be a girl, he even went out of his way to buy clothes and toys. Of course, he talked about his idea of naming her Harumi, explaining its meaning and how important it was to him. Mom agreed, she thought it was a very nice name.
But fate changed plans again, and her fourth child was born, my brother Yoshiaki, who would bear my father’s Japanese name, which means “warrior general.” Only two years later, my mother became pregnant again and gave birth to another boy, who would bear my grandfather's name, Hakaru, which means “calculating thinker.”
It seemed time to throw in the towel with five children, all boys, and he assumed that the little girl would never come. A little later his first granddaughter was born. Of course this was a great joy and he suggested to his son that he give her the name he liked so much: Harumi.
Who would have imagined that the following year my mother would be expecting again. This time it was confirmed, it was a girl! However, her granddaughter already had the name Harumi. Using the same name for her daughter could cause confusion. My father proposed another name, “Naoko,” but my mother flatly refused, her daughter was going to be called Harumi as they had agreed four years ago, there was no namesake that could stop them.
So, after five brothers and a niece with the same name, here I am, Harumi Murakami, that is my name, which was decided long before I was born, before my brothers were born, even before my father got married for the first time. That is why it is very important to me, because my father dreamed of my name, but it was my mother who fought for me to have it.
© 2024 Harumi Murakami Giuria
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