(This is the first installment of a mini series of posts, the next installment will appear soon.)
In October of 1968, little David Alway was born, although his adoptive parents wouldn't marry until two years later- leaving questions as to just when David came to be in the deeply religious, Californian family.David spent most of his childhood attending Redwood Christian School (aka RCS). From first until 11th grade, he learned the very principals of RCS:
To instill PURE MORALS in the heart of the student by:
1. Development of an appreciation for the values accrued from our past spiritual and cultural heritage. (Psalm 61:5)
2. Inculcation of the desire to choose right over wrong and to hold to one's convictions under pressure. (Daniel 1:8)
IV. To generate a SPIRIT OF PATRIOTISM by teaching:
1. Loyalty to our country and a recognition of unscriptural teachings which undermine our country's foundations. (I Peter 2:13-17)
2. Recognition of government as God-ordained. (Romans 13:1)
3. The need to become involved citizens of this nation for the Lord's sake. (Acts 13:36a)
In 11th grade, David attended Mt. Eden High School, in San Francisco. Mt Eden prides itself on instilling strong values in it's students, going as far as to declare it a mission:
The mission of the district is to enable all students to recognize and strive to fulfill their potential as caring, thinking, productive, contributing, and responsible participants in our changing world.
David graduated from Mt Eden in 1986, and spent the next three years looking for himself. In 1989, he decided to make a bold statement, and a strategic life altering choice. He would later clarify his reasons for taking this bold step of changing his name by saying:
I needed to 'find myself', and that was one of the things I felt I needed to do in order to do so...Actually, the name is Scottish (even though I haven't an ounce of Scottish blood as far as I know, but since I was adopted, I guess I'll never know...)....But as the Bard said, 'What's in a name...?'"
In all fairness, Shakespeare may have been correct when he penned those famous words, which read in full : "What's in a name? That which we call a rose, By any other name would smell as sweet." Although, I very much doubt that our David could be compared to a rose- even by Shakespeare's sometimes horrific standards. No, if we are going to give Shakespeare's words to David, I'm sure that Cymbeline's """The game is up.""" is by far a more fitting quote in this case...