I feel sorry for modern
kids. Or should I say kydz? Today’s
parents either don’t know how to spell, or they’re trying to be cute.
Not
long ago, David was always D-A-V-I-D. Little Davey didn’t need to spell his
name to the librarian, his Sunday school teacher, or the softball coach. Now he
totes flashcards and wears a name tag day and night. It might be Dayvid,
Davidde, or Daivihd. Same with a perfectly decent name like Mary. Her flashcards
could read anything from Mahree to Mayrie to Mairey.
I
cringe to think where this generation of creative spellers is leading us. Imagine
a family singing together on a road trip. Sister starts, “There was a farmer
had a dog and Bingo was his name-o, B-I-N-G-O...”
Brother
interrupts, “That’s not right. Kevin has a dog named Bingo and they spell it
B-E-E-N-G-O-U-G-H.” Family bonding takes a huge step backwards.
Or
what about Sunday school songs? The leader steps to the podium and charges
into, “The B-I-B-L-E, yes that’s the book for me…” when a redheaded girl in the
front row corrects him.
“We
don’t spell it that way anymore,” she says. “We use the new spelling:
B-Y-E-B-I-L-L.” He stumbles off the stage, his hopes for a shining career as a
song leader dashed.
I
know, I know. Embrace progress, move forward, don’t dwell on the past, change
is good, etc. I agree. But please don’t tell me I’m going to turn on the T.V.
one day and hear “M-I-K-K-E-E
M-O-W-H-S!”
(Drawings copyright Ron Levellie)
Do you have an unusual name? How about your kids?
The above story is a chapter from my second book published by Elk Lake Publishing,
Hehehe...
ReplyDeleteI am not sure I can complain about this. I changed the spelling of my name when I was in the 6th grade because Little Orphan Annie's dog was named Sandy.
Sandi: What you did is vasty different, since you only changed one letter of your name! In this tongue-in-cheek story, I was referring to names that a person MUST spell, or no one knows what on earth it is! Your moniker is cute and perky, and your reason for changing it was valid. --Grace, Jen
DeleteWhen I give my name to someone over the phone or at a business. The first words I hear is, "How do you spell it?" Or "Would you it for me?" I was born in a Catholic hospital. My mother asked a nun how to spell it. The nun told her there were two ways. C-e-c i-l-i-a, if a family was of the Roman Catholic faith or C-e-c-e-l-i-a, if a family was not of the Catholic faith. My mother was raised Presbyterian.
ReplyDelete