Say My Name!

 

 Many children go through a phase where they like to write their name on EVERYTHING.

With all due apologies to my sister for calling her out, she went through a phase where she did it. CAROL on her toys, CAROL written down on all her papers and books, CAROL on her clothes, CAROL written on paper in different forms and styles, CAROL inked on her body (not permanently, of course, - this was the 60s, and she was early elementary).

I didn't go through that. I looked at what she was doing and thought it was silly, borderline obsessive, and a bit narcissistic. But, heck, she was just a child. I was probably the weird one for not doing it.

And, yes, she did grow out of it.

Once in a while, however, we do run across someone who never grows out of it. Someone who insists on slapping their name on everything. 

Guess who that is?

They have 'branding' as their number one asset.

And it's getting as obnoxious as all get out.

Can there be anything more narcissistic and borderline evil than wanting to slap your name alongside a beloved assassinated president's on a performing arts center that you really have nothing to do with?

Imagine wanting to change the planned renaming of an aircraft carrier from black Naval World War II hero Doris Miller to Trump.

Sticking your face on money, passports, airports. Is there anyone who doesn't think the ballroom will be called the Trump Ballroom? The Trump Arch?  

He hates Obamacare. If he could eliminate that program, and recreate it exactly as it was, but call it Trumpcare, he would be the happiest camper on Earth.

Trump Accounts. Trump tariffs. Trump Steaks. Trump casinos. Trump University. Trump Tower. Trump, Trump, Trump.

He honestly thinks the more he sees his name, the more popular he is. The longer his legacy will endure.

But he's just a child. An 80-year-old man-baby.

There is very little left from my sister's name-writing stage. The toys and notebooks are gone. The name on her skin has washed away. But that is okay. Because that phase has long been over, and she knows who she is, and doesn't have to have her name everywhere for those who love her to know what a special woman, mother, and grandmother she is.

Give it time.

All this coloring his name on everything will quickly wash away once he is gone. Because, unlike my sister, he has not built a mature legacy- very few will love or remember him. And no matter how much he tries to scrawl his name over everything, that fact won't change.

I can't wait.

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28