Mum's the word

Early this morning I was exploring my friend's facebook pictures of her baby girl. It made me pause to consider the special names we give to grandparents. One photograph revealed the baby's resemblance to her grandmother who is affectionately "Gam". What a lovely choice for a grandmother's epiphet. Sweet and unique. It's one of the best parts of having a baby: choosing the nicknames of the grandparents. My friend's parents are Gam and Doo dah, with a lovely story about how those names came to be, but that's really her story to tell. I simply enjoy the way those names sound when they sing them out to that little baby girl. It makes me think of my grandparents' handles. My father's parents are (were) Nanny and Poppy, simple Newfoundland tags for generations of Newfoundland grandparents. My mother's parents are (were) Ma and Da. I realize these are confusing nicknames for grandparents as these are often the names reserved for parents, not grandparents. However, myself and one of my cousins, who are the oldest two of the grandchildren, had the special honour of having called our grandparents Ma and Da. He was raised in our grandparents home so it came naturally to him. Spending so much time with my grandparents and this particular cousin simply led me to know them as Ma and Da.

One of my favorite things to wonder is what Sam would have called my mother had she lived to be here to meet him. I know I called her mother 'Ma' but that was unique and not really fitting my mother's paritcular grandmotherness. She's not a 'Nanny' either I don't believe. I called my mother 'Mum'. 'Mummy' sometimes. It was never Mom or Mommy. She was my Mum. For a few months after she died I would sing out "Maaa-uuum" when I was home alone. I just wanted to hear myself say it out loud, as if she could answer from another room in the house. Now I play with grandmother names to see what sounds right for Sam to say when he's older. I have to call her something. Sam will have to know all about the special grandmother he has watching over him. Grandma, Gran, Granny, Grammie, Nan, Nanny, Nana. Lexie. No, that wouldn't be right. It's a tough decision because all I want is to be able to ask Mum what she'd like to be called. I've even thought about waiting and asking Sam what he wants to call her. I could ask my Dad but I secretly think I knew my mother better than he ever did. Mum needs a unique name that honors the kind of grandmother she would surely be for Sam. She would sing to him and dance with him, teach him to love music and memorize lyrics the way she taught me. He would be cuddled and loved the way only a grandmother can. She would treasure him the way she treasured me and he would know how happy she was that he was born.

After much thought and research on the net I discovered several good options for my mother's grandmother-name. No real decision yet though. I hope that wherever she is she can give me a hint about the name she'd choose. She was unique and special so the name should be too. Funny that I would have so much trouble in deciding. For now? Mum's the word.