Luke and his namesake have been an enigma to me.

Allow me to explain.

I'm a big believer in the power of a name.  I think the name parents choose for their child is incredibly important.  In Old Testament times and in many other cultures, the name a person was given signified some reality about that person.  Look at all the great names God gives directly to people in Scripture or that are chosen for them based upon their literal meanings.  I think that same reality still holds true today.  So when we name our children it is a huge decision for us.  None of this trendy stuff or "that just sounds nice" stuff.  It's got to be the RIGHT name, a name that will infuse that person's character, in a way.

Luke's name I had in mind from the very beginning of my pregnancy.  It was the right name for him.  I just knew it.  But how would this particular child personify that name?  I thought for a long time that it was maybe because he would be artistic or scholarly.  St. Luke was an artist, a doctor, a scholar.  A calm thoughtful child he would be, I so foolishly foolishly thought.  So the last couple of years after his incredibly easy babyhood have had me stumped and made me question my whole naming philosophy.  Because Luke?  He is the exact opposite of that it seems.  Perhaps when he is older he'll become the artistic, doctory, scholarly one, but for now?  That is not in any way, shape, or form his temperament.

How could he be a Luke?

AND THEN it hit me a few weeks ago.  It aaaalllll makes sense.

What is the symbol for St. Luke?

An ox.

And that THAT is why he is named Luke.  It's all clear now.  THAT is Luke.
(Funny enough, several other of the little Lukes I know seem to be giving their moms a similar run for their money.  I'm thinking we should put em all in a barn ;)

So anyway, after that tale, I shall now get back to the main point of this rambling post.
Which is how we "celebrated" our little ox's feast day.

I know.  The feast of Saint Luke was, like, three whole weeks ago.  It's true.

Poor fourth born child.

We weren't able to celebrate his feast day on the proper day due to other obligations plus feeling all first trimestery.  I did have Brian pick up the necessary ingredient for my only thought-of treat for the occasion...but I just couldn't pull it off on the day.  Or even in the same week.  Which is incredibly sad once you see how simple it really is.

It wasn't until last week that we added a tiny treat to our dinner in honor of St. Luke.  I mean it.  It was the smallest little addition to dinner but I'm a BIG believer that incorporating special feasts and observances of the liturgical year does NOT always mean spending all day in the kitchen or planning grocery trips weeks in advance.  Sometimes that's awesome.  And sometimes that just doesn't work.

So for our little Luke's feast day we had some Ox Horn Rolls with dinner.

Which are not at all the same as crescent rolls from the tube and curled up strategically at the ends.  Ahem.

Small or not, the boys loved them, it was a treat for us, and it gave us a chance to talk about and celebrate St. Luke a bit.  And that's what matters most, I think.






Maybe next year we'll add on these adorably sweet artist palette cookies from Jessica.  And maybe by then my little ox will have embraced the artistic life.  But I'm not going to bet on it ;)