Friday, May 22, 2009

The story of the Emerson King

Emerson King...
How did that name come to be? It has a background story in 4 parts...

Part 1
Back in 1989 when we moved to the coast, my guy knew the guy who owned a yacht in our harbor...the Dow Jones II. A group of us went out on it one day... and Gabe got to steer it for a while...

Part II
Probably 10 years ago, Saddie was telling Gabe how my brother nor I had ever named any of our kids after her... so Gabe, in his considerate way, told his grandmother that if he ever had a son, he'd give him the name 'King'.

Part III
Probably 8 years ago, before Gabe and Emily were married, Emily told me one day - kidding around - that if she ever had a son, she should name him Emerson... 'Emer's' 'Son', because Emers was one of her nicknames.

Part IV
About 7 years ago, Gabe asked me why I hadn't painted him a painting. I asked him what he would want a picture of. "Boats... I like boats," was his answer.

That conversation led me to the marina, where I took some photographs. One of them, had the Dow Jones II in the foreground. I decided to paint a version of that picture, so I took out a few things and added a few, but left the Dow Jones II in the foreground.

When the painting was about finished, I was ready to paint on the boat's name... and I remembered those first couple of things - Gabe telling Saddie he'd give his son the name King... Emily saying she should name her son 'Emerson'... and I named the boat, Emerson King. I also named one of the boats in the background, the Bonnie Lou.... and another boat, I gave the number 100278 - which is Gabe's birthday. I finished the painting in November of 2002.

After Gabe and Emily got married in March, 2003, I gave them the painting. Since then, The Emerson King has hung in their home.... In Biblical times, names were indicative of who you were... what you would become... I feel like the background of the name 'Emerson King' makes it all the more special to our incredibly special little man!

I think Emerson should inherit this painting when he grows up!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

When I tell my friends the story of Emerson's name, they comment on Gabe remembering what he had told me and Emily agreeing to it. So thanks to you two. You're so very special and I love you. Saddie