Vita 1: Jeffrey

The origin of my given name ('Jeffrey') is either German, English, or French. One source maintains 'Jeffrey' is a variation of the name 'Geoffrey' that was introduced by the Normans in the 11th Century. I used to hate the spelling 'Geoffrey' because two of my brother's best friends pretended to think that my name was spelled that way and often called me 'Gorfrey' or 'Gorf,' for short (pronouncing the 'G' gutturally, as in 'grant,' rather than a hard 'G' that sounds like a 'J'). I like the 'Geoffrey' spelling now...when pronounced it sounds kinda cool and prestigious (this has also been helped since I became friends with a coworker at Tony Roma's named 'Geoffrey'). It first appeared as 'Jeffrey' during the Middle Ages, and is now the most common form in the US. The name 'Jeffrey' spent 4 or 5 years among the top 10 boy names in the 1960s...the popularity of the name has steadily declined since. I guess my parents were a little late to jump on the bandwagon. It now sits at 190.

'Jeffrey' means 'peace' (Latin: 'pax,' which I often use as a way of 'signing off' to a letter or blog post) or more specifically 'God's peace.' I think that's a meaning into which I have grown. I am a pretty 'peaceful' guy, I think...pretty easy to get along with (though I'm sure I've made some enemies over the years) and mostly laid back. I remember in childhood I would be quite particular about the correct spelling of my name. It seems the pharmacy always got it wrong ('Jeffery')...now I don't care (except for important legal documents like my 'will' and 'licenses'). I was called 'Jeff' early on in life by friends in school (and even some relatives, too). When my mother heard people call me 'Jeff,' she would emphatically correct them by verbally adding '-rey' almost every time. I don't think she knew how extensive people's usage of 'Jeff' was until a couple of years ago...she asked Carrie (my wife) if everyone called me 'Jeff.' That was a heart-breaking day for her...to discover that even my own wife calls me 'Jeff' most of the time (except for when I'm in trouble). I think it's befitting for someone named 'Jeffrey' to not care if people call him 'Jeff' or 'Gorf' or 'Jefro Bodine.'

There are a few famous people named 'Jeff' or 'Jeffrey': Jeff Gordon (race car driver, who I used to despise since I was raised a 'Ford' man); Jeff Foxworthy (comedian, whose humor I adore and standups I frequently recite, much to my wife's chagrin); Jeff Goldblum (actor, 'Jurassic Park,' 'Independence Day' and who could forget the parody of him on SNL's Celebrity Jeopardy?); Jeffrey Dean Morgan (actor, who plays Izzie Stevens' late fiance, Denny Duquette, on Grey's Anatomy); Jeffrey Dahmer (yikes!).

Back to 'peace': 'Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God' (Matthew 5.9). I like that verse. I'm rarely, if ever, a confrontational person. Maybe I'm a weakling, but I never enjoyed watching presidential or vice-presidential debates...they made my heart rate skyrocket...(maybe that had to do with how much 'bull' usually comes out in a debate). Even theological debates (which greatly interest me) get my heart rate up a little too high...esp. on Calvinism. A very good friend of mine and I got into two lengthy debates on the issue...one was on the night of my bachelor party (we went to a St. Louis Cardinals game a couple of weeks before my wedding) and one on the night before my wedding...it got kinda heated and I think I remember some rash accusations...those needed reconciling...we needed reconciling. Glad we could and did a couple of years ago.

Reconciling and peace: 'For God was pleased to have all the fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross' (Colossians 1.19-20). Another friend of mine from college, when going over arguments he made against a person he debated with on a particular issue, would sometimes say of his opponent after my friend's apparent victory in the debate: 'I pretty much nailed him to the cross, huh?' I didn't know how to respond...in the story I know, the one who got 'nailed to the cross' was victorious!

Pax!