I had to write something similar to a "My Name" fragment by Sandra Cisneros.
The Format was
Write like you were a child.
Use similes, metaphors, personification and alliterations.
First paragraph-Literal Meaning
2-How I got the name
3-Story of origin. More about the person or place associated with name
4-Continuation of name and how you feel about it
5-You experience with your name.
6-If you could change your name...
In English my name means nothing. It is three letters jammed together to form a syllable. It sounds like a place. A place with cages containing animals and hundreds of eager spectators. In Chinese it is the color red. A warm color. It is like the five fast, frenzied, and fine brushstrokes that I scribble onto paper when I feel like an artist.
It is my Dad's surname and his Dad's before him. It also belongs to my Grandfather's eleven children, three of whom are dead. It is now mine. From the stories and the photos, Grandfather seemed to be an austere man. I imagine he lived the life of a happy farmer, forever fruitful until his death. Despite the conditions of living in a three-roomed shack among twelve other people, my grandfather managed to die a happy man. I regret not knowing him very well.
My grandfather told me it came before him. Over three thousand years before him. The first ones to be named Zhu were the peasants who were granted their own land by a kind-hearted king. In remembrance for their homeland, the people of Zhu adopted the stately name as their surname. Until finally my grandfather received it. And just like that, I possess the passed down title, twenty nine centuries later.
With a long line of history including kings, emperors, and dignitaries sharing the name, I can only kowtow to its greatness. However, I really never knew much about the name. I never cared much for its history, its origin or its popularity. To me, it's still the same annoying three English letters I have trouble adapting into my signature.
At school no one really mentions the name. Some find it a tough tongue twister, trying to pronounce a last name with the letters "z" and "h" side by side. Others pronounce a religion. I envy those easy one syllable names like Green, Brown and Woo. Although mine may not be colorful and easily pronounced, I love it. It's packs a powerful punch when I say it.
I wouldn't change my last name for any other. I envision my name being widely recognized in few fast years. Mr. Zhu sounds like a name fit for a chief executive officer. Dr. Zhu sounds like what they call my Dad. Then there is that extraordinary title, Zhu the Great Ruler of Earth. Yes. Something like Zhu the Great Ruler of Earth sounds just like me.
Correct any typos and grammar errors you see please.
-Thanks.
