For a long time I have used an idiom of my own making. I like to call it “The grilled Cheese Sandwich” idiom. The idea behind it, is that there are a thousand ways to make a perfect grilled cheese sandwich. Which way we choose to make it, doesn’t really matter, it’s obtaining the perfect grilled cheese sandwich for ourselves, that’s what really matters. It is a concept I use for a lot of things, philosophy, religion, music, etc. I don’t know how other parents name their children, but when it came time for us to name the boys, there was much debate. We essentially started throwing names out to each other. Some were immediately rejected, “Oh no, I knew I guy in high school named such and such, he was an a-hole.” Then there was those that we both didn’t reject right away. We knew gender both times, so that narrowed down the names as well. Eventually we came up with a short list. I believe a name can have a big impact on a persons life, “Freakonomics” dedicated an interesting chapter to that subject. For me, it was the literary connection to both names that appealed, as well as the name it’s self of course. I wasn’t going to name my kids Ernest, no matter how much I appreciate Hemingway's body of work. So in my mind, Zane’s name came from Zane Grey, one of the most prolific authors of Spaghetti Westerns (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaghetti_western), before there was even such a thing as a Spaghetti Western. Honestly, I am not a huge fan of his work, but I like the name, and liked the literary connection. Like wise for me, Holden is named after Holden Caulfield from J.D. Salinger's book “The Catcher in the Rye”. This book has quite a lot of baggage to it, enough to support it’s own blog, from John Lennon’s Death, to it being the conspiracy theory bible (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Catcher_in_the_Rye), and in my opinion isn’t J.D. Salinger's best book. However, I really liked the name, and I absolutely love J.D.Salinger’s books, including “Catcher in the Rye”. Never in my wildest dreams did I think the name would be the absolute perfect grilled cheese sandwich for Holden.
Mr. Caulfield becomes disillusioned with life, and all the “phonies” in it. His goal is to become the Catcher in the Rye, and keep kids from becoming corrupt, superficial people. In the end he seemingly succumbs to the whole process, and essentially becomes a “phony” himself. My Holden is the real deal. There is nothing superficial, materialistic, or phony about him. He loves unconditionally. Things do not appeal to him, only people. He doesn’t even watch television, preferring videos (Often the same videos, over and over again), and could care less what the newest, coolest toy, trend, or clothes is. He does not lie, in fact, I think he doesn’t even understand the concept. He is very of the moment, at all times. He is very creative, in very unconventional ways. The best part is, no matter how much he develops, and assimilates, these are the things that won’t change.
Holden is an incredibly happy child. He loves to play, loves to be tickled, loves to hug. Certainly he can have bad days, or get upset by things, but his over all demeanor is always happy. Even when he is completely destroying a room, it is all for fun in his mind. The hardest part is that his batteries never run out. He is always looking for his next adventure. Whether it’s pulling all the clothes out of the dresser, or taking every book out of the book shelf, or dumping out all the shoes, he does it all while smiling. His needs are basic, and his enjoyment simple. As I have stated before, he can be happy being pushed on the swing for long periods of time. He loves to go for Holden style walks and hikes, loves to drive around in the car and loves to swim. He loves to sing to himself, or with other people. (I recently realized that Holden writes music. He sings little melodies that he repeats. For instance he made up a song that is just the word apple juice sung over and over again. There is a distinct melody and phrasing of that melody, and it is not spontaneous anymore, he sings it at different times, exactly the same way.)
I would love for Holden to not be autistic, for his sake, Zane’s sake, and my own. However, where Holden Caulfield failed, My Holden succeeds in being The Catcher in the Rye, at least for his own sake, and mine, and possibly Zane’s. I am so much less uptight then I used to be. When Holden starts singing, or being loud in public, I join right in. people are welcome to stare, I don’t care anymore, I used too!
Mr. Caulfield becomes disillusioned with life, and all the “phonies” in it. His goal is to become the Catcher in the Rye, and keep kids from becoming corrupt, superficial people. In the end he seemingly succumbs to the whole process, and essentially becomes a “phony” himself. My Holden is the real deal. There is nothing superficial, materialistic, or phony about him. He loves unconditionally. Things do not appeal to him, only people. He doesn’t even watch television, preferring videos (Often the same videos, over and over again), and could care less what the newest, coolest toy, trend, or clothes is. He does not lie, in fact, I think he doesn’t even understand the concept. He is very of the moment, at all times. He is very creative, in very unconventional ways. The best part is, no matter how much he develops, and assimilates, these are the things that won’t change.
Holden is an incredibly happy child. He loves to play, loves to be tickled, loves to hug. Certainly he can have bad days, or get upset by things, but his over all demeanor is always happy. Even when he is completely destroying a room, it is all for fun in his mind. The hardest part is that his batteries never run out. He is always looking for his next adventure. Whether it’s pulling all the clothes out of the dresser, or taking every book out of the book shelf, or dumping out all the shoes, he does it all while smiling. His needs are basic, and his enjoyment simple. As I have stated before, he can be happy being pushed on the swing for long periods of time. He loves to go for Holden style walks and hikes, loves to drive around in the car and loves to swim. He loves to sing to himself, or with other people. (I recently realized that Holden writes music. He sings little melodies that he repeats. For instance he made up a song that is just the word apple juice sung over and over again. There is a distinct melody and phrasing of that melody, and it is not spontaneous anymore, he sings it at different times, exactly the same way.)
I would love for Holden to not be autistic, for his sake, Zane’s sake, and my own. However, where Holden Caulfield failed, My Holden succeeds in being The Catcher in the Rye, at least for his own sake, and mine, and possibly Zane’s. I am so much less uptight then I used to be. When Holden starts singing, or being loud in public, I join right in. people are welcome to stare, I don’t care anymore, I used too!
No comments:
Post a Comment