Don't Cry Joni and Songs and names

(This is a good song.)

What is it about songs?

“Maybe it’s wrong to say you love me too cause I know you never do. Somebody else is waiting for you…”

This song was originally done by the Neocolours (remember Jamie Rivera and Jimmy Antiporda, Neocolours’ chief songwriter, and how they parted ways because of Jamie’s obsession to be the next Leah Salongga of the Philippines). That song was later revived by Side A. Believe it or not during my freshman year one of my classmates, Benito from auto technology, wrote the whole lyrics of that song and passed it off as an essay piece for our English one class. I was laughing when I read it, but after the semester, when our graded class cards were returned, to my chagrin and joy, I saw that he had a better grade than me. So whenever I hear that song, I remember dear old Benito. He graduated two years ago and I sometime see him in Taytay, Rizal. Last I saw him is he’s planning to add education units to his degree so that he can teach.

“Well, I don’t know how I knew it. But I knew it somehow. You’re the answer to the questions, no one answered till now. I don’t know what you see, or what you see in me. There could never be what you are to me…..Starts that glisten, lips for kissin’. Honey listen its true…”

The title of that song is “Simply Jesse” by Rex Smith. I love that song and I told myself that I will name my child after it. After a few years I got a daughter named Jesse Faith. Jesse is from that song and Faith was the name given by my wife. So whenever I hear that song I would tell my daughter, “Hey, that’s where you got your name.” I don’t know if when she grew up she’ll still appreciate the connection with that song.

I knew a bass player named Joni and whenever we asked him where he got his name he’ll be quiet. But then one of his friends would sing,

“Joni, Joni don’t you cry. I’ll….by and by….” Then they would all laugh. He nodded. “Yes, that’s where I got my name.”

I am thinking what if my daughter is already a teenager and some of her friends asked her where she got her name and then someone would sing,

“Stars that glisten lips for kissin….”

Don’t ever, ever name your children after a song. Tsk, tsk, tsk…anyway I can always say that I named her after my neighbor.

Me, I was named after the doctor who commandeered me out of my mother’s womb.