What's in a name?

As I prepare to fly down to celebrate my Dad's 80th birthday, thoughts of immortality swirl around in my head, his, mine, my kids. I think of my Aunt who will be there with her four adult children, two daughters,two sons. 
Sons, that will carry on their family name. 
My Dad will not have that luxury. He was blessed with five girls, (sadly one lost at a very early age. I often wonder what Cindy would of looked like today, the person she would be.) 
So who's to carry on his name? 
"Pffttt", shrugging his shoulders, he looks anything but concerned about it.
I think about his reaction or lack thereof. I've come to realize that a name is but just that.. a name. 
The archives will show our descendants and ancestors,the information stored on disks or hardcopies in some government cabinet or vault somewhere, proof for those who will have a need to know.

But today, for now, there are four of us, all girls. We all carry some trait of our family name, if not on paper then somewhere within us. We are related by blood, yes, but family unit we grew up in are the ties that bind as well. We are who who we are.. John and Louise's daughters. We have private jokes, funny little sayings we grew up with. The four generations long recipe we and our children make, a favorite when we are all together. 
I think about our children now and those yet to be born, I know we've passed along, in some form or another,the family 'way'. They don't bear our maiden names but these cousins will recognize some part of our family tree in each other. These traditions and memories are what makes us ... us.

I know this because as my father before me, my husband and I have brought into this world no sons, we were blessed with two beautiful strong willed daughters. We have forged a new family the four of us, complete with jokes,sayings & traditions of our own. But if you look closely at the threads of who our daughters are, you will see John,Louise and their daughters. You will see continuum. 
What's in a name? 
"Pfftt", I say, as I shrug my shoulders. 
What matters is the heart and pulse of a family. Past. Present. And future.