What's in a Name?

Twelve years ago, Eric Fergeson and I had the world's longest text thread. After meeting in graduate school, we had decided to form a business together. If only we could come up with a name. Sycamore Counseling... it sounds like "sick-a-more." No, that's not it. Others came and went; we tired to be simple, then we tried to be deep. How about Peniel Counseling? That one was quickly nixed after an unfortunate misspelling in a Google search.

As starting the business progressed, we got to the place where a name was the one thing we were waiting on to go forward. Then, late one night, it came. I bounced the idea off my husband first, it was a little out there, both deep and simple. At this point, we weren’t holding anything back from our brainstorming.

"I like the idea of a forge and iron sharpening iron," I remember saying.

I texted Eric and explained. I feel like I learn and grow as I work with clients, counseling isn't one sided. Also, there is the strength element. I've seen marriages hold on by a thread and end up stronger after the work is done. We wanted to stay away from simplistic, picturesque imagery, that's not what counseling is, anyone who has gone through it knows this, people work through some of the toughest issues and hurts imaginable and then find that work was purposeful and worth the process.

Although we knew and believe counseling is hard work, "forge" sounded too harsh. The Forge. Forging Counseling Clinic. Iron Sharpening Iron. Nope, nope, nope. “‘Place’ sounds softer, to counterbalance ‘forge’."

The Forging Place.

Eric agreed, that was the one.

As Shakespeare said, "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." It is true. We would have done the same work with the same enthusiasm regardless. However, a name sets the tone. It tells of the mission and vision. I definitely like ours.

A forge is a place of transformation. In a forge, a craftsman heats metal to a temperature so that modification can take place. This change is seen when a piece of metal that was previously not being used for its full potential can be made into something powerful, effective, and fruitful. The process takes strength. The process takes dedication. the process is deliberate and can be painstaking. But, there is a new creation that can only emerge when iron sharpens iron.