My Lovely Name

 In Chinese, my name means full of life. My name was given to me by my grandfather. When I was eight years old, I asked my grandfather why he named me Chunlin. My grandfather said that he picked Chun which means Spring because I was born in April. Spring is the first season of the year. In my hometown-Kaiping, China, people who live in villages will plant grains. Because Spring is always raining, the grains grow fast. He hoped that I would have a good beginning. Lin means forest. He hoped that I would grow up sparky and healthy. My last name “Pan” was inherited from my father’s last name. In my hometown, babies usually inherit their father’s last name. In Chinese, my name sounds like a boy’s name. When people hear my name, they thought I was a boy. Even though I moved to Chicago, I would like to keep my name because it includes my family’s hope. I expect that I grow up like a big tree to protect my family.