Double the Charm

In the English-speaking Catholic Church, it is customary to choose a saint you emulate to intercede on your behalf for the rest of your life. You choose this saint when preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation. Part of this custom that I didn't fully understand at the time of my confirmation in 8th grade was that you take this saint's name and add it to your existing legal name. My first and middle name are Kelly Elizabeth, and wanting to keep things in my life simple, I decided to choose a saint with my name: St. Elizabeth (Ann Seton). I figured my middle name could just cover everything. On the day of my confirmation, I realized the Church doesn't work that way when I was introduced as Kelly Elizabeth Elizabeth. Hrmph. I am sharing this information with you, dear reader, so that no one thinks I am out to make fun of anyone's name or customs, for I am in no position to do so.

In the South, it is a common custom to be called both your first and middle name. As a teacher, I am plagued by this custom; it is challenge enough to remember first names!

Here's a typical conversation on the first day of school.

Yankee Teacher: Say "here" when I call your name, please excuse and correct me if I pronounce it wrong. Let me know if you'd like to be called by a nickname. Clara?

Student: Here, Clara Ruth, please.

Yankee Teacher: Thank you. OK...Sarah?

Student: Here! And it's Sarah Grace.

Yankee Teacher: OK...um, Ruth?

Student: Ruth Mayberry

Yankee Teacher: (sigh, thinking: really?) Fine....John?

Student: Here, but it's John Garrison, please, ma'am.

If you're a Northerner like me, it's a safe bet that the only person using your middle name is your mother, and when it's used, you're likely in big trouble.

However, I must say that I've quite gotten the hang the double first name thing (n.b. sometimes the double name is a double first name and then they also have a middle name). There's even a certain charm to it, especially because common middle names are family names, and if I've learned anything from southerners, it's that they know and love their history.

One of my favorites that I've heard is Mary Palmer. Now, I don't do the name justice, but said with the right southern drawl, and this name meets your ears with the southern comfort of cicadas in the summer. The woman who named their daughter this told me all her family's history in Mississippi, and as she traced it back to the Civil War (like most can and do), I imagined that her daughter will one day be able to share these stories and elucidate on the importance of knowing your heritage, and it's this part of some people's insistence to be called their first and middle name that makes memorizing two names for one student worth the effort.