My Name Is Yoon

My Name Is Yoon

It was not long after we settled in that my father called me to his side.

"Soon you will go to your new school.You must learn to print your name in English," he said. "Here. This is how it looks."

I wrinkled my nose. I did not like YOON.Lines. Circles. Each standing alone.

"My name looks happy in Korean," I said. "The symbols dance together.

"And in Korean my name means Shining Wisdom.I like the Korean way better."

"Well, you must learn to write it this way.Remember, even when you write in English, it still means Shining Wisdom."

I did not want to learn the new way.I wanted to go back home to Korea.I did not like America. Everything was different here.But my father handed me a pencil, and his eyes said Do-as-I-say.He showed me how to print every letter in the English alphabet.So I practiced, and my father was very pleased.

"Look," he called to my mother. "See how well our little Yoon does!"

"Yes," she said. "She will be a wonderful student!" I wrinkled my nose.

My first day at school I sat quietly at my desk while the teacher talked about CAT.She wrote CAT on the chalkboard. She read a story about CAT.I did not know what her words meant, but I knew what the pictures said.She sang a song about CAT. It was a pretty song, and I tried to sing the words, too.

Later she gave me a paper with my name on it.

"Name. Yoon," she said. And she pointed to the empty lines underneath.

I did not want to write YOON. I wrote CAT instead. I wrote CAT on every line.

I wanted to be CAT. I wanted to hide in a corner.My mother would find me and cuddle up close to me.I would close my eyes and mew quietly.

The teacher looked at my paper.She shook her head and frowned. "So you are CAT?" she asked.The ponytail girl sitting behind me giggled.

After school I said to my father, "We should go back to Korea. It is better there."

"Do not talk like that," he said. "America is your home now."

......
未登录用户只显示文件一半，登录后可以查看全文，并且可以听外教原声朗读。