This might sound too good to be true, but there is not one thing I would change about my childhood. Of course there were challenges here and there, but now as an adult in my 40s, I look back on my childhood with reverence and a great deal of awe.
What’s also impressive is the way in which our parents parented my four siblings and me all those years ago.
Balancing a Family of Seven
By their early-to-mid forties, my parents had five children ranging from 2-years-old to seventeen.
My dad worked for himself - from home - before WFH was even an acronym, let alone a commonplace practice. He built his own business and managed several sole enterprises to provide for the seven adults in his care.
My mom was the best and most attentive mother in the world. She woke up every day with the sole purpose to be a Proverbs 31 woman to her husband and her children.
Parenting from a Foundation of Faith
My parents built their marriage on the foundation of faith in God and His Word, and they also parented from that same bedrock. Both of my parents diligently served as spiritual leaders of our household - not just in how they instructed us but also by their own actions.
They spent time everyday reading and studying the Bible with us and on their own. They also taught us how to implement daily, soul-nourishing habits such as memorizing scripture, praying, and asking one another for forgiveness.
Individual Love and Attention
In all the wonderful ways our parents tended to their flock as a whole, they also managed to make us all feel special in our own way.
Just thinking about the logistics of creating meaningful and personal memories for five growing adults over several decades is astonishing. And yet, as far as my memory allows, I can attest that somehow - in the midst of so much life happening in our family every day - our parents were able to dote on their five children collectively and individually.
The Power of Names
One example of their personalized forms of love is how they named and nicknamed their five children.
- Katherine Ann, the oldest
- Meaning - Pure, Gracious
- Nickname - Good Girl
- Sarah Elizabeth, the second-born
- Meaning - Princess, God Is My Oath
- Nickname - Sweet Girl
- Melissa Jane, the third-born
- Meaning - Honeybee, God Is Gracious
- Nickname - Sweetness
- Priscilla Grace, the fourth-born
- Meaning - Ancient, Blessing
- Nickname - Precious
- John David, the fifth-born
- Meaning - God Is Gracious, Beloved
- Nickname - Good Boy
Names may seem somewhat inconsequential to most people. However, our parents put a great deal of thought into choosing our birth names and our nicknames.
As noted in the scriptures, our parents believed that names carry a spiritual heritage of God’s calling on our lives:
But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. Isaiah 43:1
And in that same manner, even our nicknames carry a heavy weight because they can affirm our positive traits and speak life into our being:
Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. Proverbs 18:21
An event last week reminded me not only of the weight our names carry, but also the loving and uniquely attentive way our parents tended to and loved us.
A Not-So-Normal Tuesday Afternoon
One week ago, my sister Priscilla (nicknamed “Precious”) left the house to go for a walk alone in the park. It’s something she has done hundreds of times at a place we frequent often. The sun was shining and the day seemed just like any other day - a normal, peaceful Tuesday afternoon.
But in the blink of an eye, a turn of events occurred that no one could imagine. Within a short period of time, police had been called, a report had been filed, and Priscilla - 100% safe and protected by the grace of God - was on the other side of a traumatic ordeal without any harm.
When she arrived back at home, shaken but grateful, our little family surrounded her with love and comfort. But it was later that night, when we were helping our dad get into bed, that he grabbed her hand, held it close to his face, and with tears in his eyes said, “You are PRECIOUS to me.”
The Weight of His Words
Those words echoed in my heart. Time stopped for a moment, and in the midst of all the uncertainty, our father’s words pierced through the pain and fear, reminding me of the individual love and tremendous impact our names played in our lives. His gentle voice was a lifeline and a life-affirming reminder of our unique character.
Our parents knew that our names were a prophetic gift to us. And even decades later, our father resounded that prophecy over his fourth-born by reminding her of the invaluable gift of her own life.
I couldn’t help but think back to our childhood, to those countless moments when our parents instilled in us our worth and the value of our individuality. Through their faith, they taught us that we are cherished, not just by them but also by God. It was this foundation of love and faith that enabled them to speak life into us during our darkest times.
A Lifetime of Love
As Dad looked Priscilla in the eye, it wasn’t just his words that mattered—it was the weight of a lifetime of love, of being known and seen for who we truly are.
His words reinforced that the nickname “Precious” wasn’t just a word; it was a declaration of her identity, a reminder of her value, especially when the world had tried to rob her of it.
Those five words also reaffirmed her worth and reminded her—and all of us—that we are loved beyond measure.
In times of trouble, it’s this love, the one rooted in faith and family, that becomes our anchor. We are so grateful to have parents who not only raised us with such intentionality but continue to remind us of our individual and God-given worth, no matter what life throws our way.
Priscilla, you are precious—to Dad, to our family, and to God. And that truth will never change.
