Naming

It was beautiful. We were squeezed into a Shabbat morning service during which twin boys had their bar mitzvah. Peter and I both chanted from the Torah with K and M standing on chairs next to us so they could see the scroll. While I read, K stood up and waved to the congregation. Peter had to read with M's head between his and the scroll, 'cause M wanted to be up close staring at the words.

After we chanted, we gave a short explanation of the kids' names. We told the story of how M and K had been given Russian names by their birthparents and their American and Hebrew names by us. Then people in the congregation stood up to offer blessings. It was a beautiful moment.

After the service, we had somewhere between sixty and eighty people over to celebrate.

The only day I recall being happier was my wedding day.