Jimmy Peakes was best known in his days as a Hogwarts student for two things.
One was being a Beater for the Gryffindor Quidditch Team. The other was his constantly excited state.
Jimmy Peakes had another passion: Christmas.
From toddlerhood through adulthood, Jimmy Peakes had always been a Christmas junkie.
He loved everything to do with Christmas: trees, lights, decor, stockings, Christmas music, presents, candy canes, snowmen, Santa Claus, Twas the Night Before Christmas etc.
But his very favorite thing about Christmas was animated Christmas specials. While he had no interest in A Charlie Brown Christmas, which he recognized as boring and irrelevant, he LOVED both Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. He correctly identified Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer as the best of the animated Christmas specials of the 1960s and watching Rudolph the Red Nosed reindeer was Jimmy's favorite part of the Christmas season.
Jimmy watched the Rudolph special three times a year: once in early December, once in mid-December and once on Christmas Eve.
Reading Twas the Night Before Christmas and watching Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer was the centerpiece of Jimmy's Christmas Eve.
But the Christmas season of 2010 was going to be an especially special one for Jimmy.
He was scheduled to become a first time father sometime around Christmas.
As the time when Jimmy's son was to come into the world drew nearer as the Christmas season progressed, Jimmy was faced with the decision that every father had to make; what was he going to name his child?"
On the evening of Sunday, December 19th, 2010, Jimmy decided to take a walk around the block. Many of his neighbors had put up Christmas lights and he thought he'd go for a walk and take them in.
It was a chilly and quiet evening, and the skies were clear.
Jimmy passed various types of displays of Christmas lights as he took his walk.
He liked the multicolored strings of Christmas lights best, but he could enjoy and appreciate the all red, all green, all blue, and all white displays just as well.
On this night, it was the display of all red Christmas lights that set off a light in Jimmy's head.
When many people thought at Christmas, they most associated the color of red with Santa Claus. And on some level, so did Jimmy. But, when he saw this particular set of all red Christmas lights, he instantly thought of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and the red light his iconic nose had provided to Santa on that fateful Christmas Eve.
"Of course," thought Jimmy suddenly, staring at the all red Christmas light display. "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer is my favorite Christmas special and my son will be born around Christmas. I shall give my son a Rudolph based name. "
Jimmy thought about all the characters and events in Rudolph and thought about what he might name his son.
Hermy was out. Hermione Granger was sometimes nicknamed Hermy and with as famous and revered as Hermione was in the Wizarding World, if he named his son Hermy, everyone would assume it was a nod to Hermione Granger.
Jimmy respected Hermione and what she had done, but he wasn't naming his son after her and didn't want anyone to have that impression.
Yukon?
Well Jimmy loved the character of Yukon Cornelius, but it just didn't feel right to Jimmy to name his son Yukon. There was nothing to say that there would be anything wrong with Jimmy naming his son Yukon. Yet when the idea popped into Jimmy's head, something nagged at him. That thing nagging at him was the feeling that there was a better choice, a choice too good to pass up.
As Jimmy stood for several more minutes and several more nanoseconds looking at the all red Christmas lights display, a hearty feeling engulfed Jimmy's insides as he suddenly realized that this decision should have been obvious.
Rudolph.
Jimmy's son would be Rudolph Peakes.
Just as Rudolph had been Santa's light at Christmastime, so too Rudolph would be Jimmy's light at Christmastime.
Jimmy's world had always been merry and bright, but becoming a father was going to be his merriest and brightest moment of all.
Jimmy was sure that the birth of his son was going to be the best and most meaningful moment of his life and that nothing else could come remotely close to the joy and light of that.
Jimmy finally completed his Christmas lights viewing tour with warmth in his heart.
He returned home a content man who couldn't wait for his son to come into the world.
At 11 P.M. on Christmas Eve 2010, little Rudolph Peakes was born.
Smiling joyously at his newborn son, Jimmy burst out:
"Rudolph so bright, you are my pride and joy tonight."
Welcome to December, everyone!
A shout out to the following members who have added The Harry Potter Naming Thread to their favorites and/or follows lists since the last update:
PrettyPrincess1616.
Much love from Arizona for all the support. Love you all-Michael :)