Welcoming our Beautiful Son into the World

Our beautiful baby boy arrived in our arms twenty minutes past midnight on December 5th. It was an intense and powerful water birth, and I will never forget the awe of beholding him for the first time by the light of the salt lamp in our little cabin in the woods.

This is my son. Our son. Our precious boy.

His existence has felt utterly surreal and mystical from the beginning of my pregnancy. Bigger than anything I can conceive… earth-changing, world-shattering, and I knew he would change my life in ways beyond anything I could imagine. And here he was — everything, all of him, in my arms.

He came into the world, winking with one eye open, looking intently at us. So tiny, and yet full of fire and strength.

I knew him instantly. Of course it’s you. It has always been you.

Elokai Ari Munyard

The name came to me and Joel on the 7th day after his arrival. We had never heard of it before. It was a mix of two sounds: Elo and Kai. Afterward, when we looked up those sounds, we found meaning after meaning in different languages and cultures that created the perfect constellation of who he is.

“Elohai” - “My God” in Hebrew
“Elohim” - “Gods,” “Divinity” in Hebrew
“Kai” - “The sea” in Japanese and Hawaiian
“Kai”- “Keeper of the keys, protector of the earth” in Welsh, Scandinavian, and Greek
“Kai”- “Food” in Maori
“Kai” - “Eating” in Australian Aboriginal
“Ekam” - (His initials: Elokai “Kai” Ari Munyard): “Unity,” “Oneness” in Sanskrit

Energetically, Joel and I feel the two sounds of his name hold the balance of spirit and earth. As above, so below… from beyond the skies to the sea. Bringing the light of the universe onto Earth.

Welcome to this beautiful life, Elokai. You are the light of my universe.

Love,
Ashmi