Little White Duck

Hello, That’s me, Na. I was born in Zhifang, a suburb of Wuhan, China, in 1973. Wuhan is very large city near the center of the country, next to the famous Chang River (Yangtze). In fact, the river goes right through the city.
Liu is my family name. Na is my given name. In China the family name comes first: Liu Na

But children in China are hardly ever called by their real names. All children are given nicknames. The tradition began thousands of years ago, because it was thought that bad luck and spirits couldn’t find you if your true name was never spoken out loud.
So everyone in Wuhan calls me Qin. It means piano. A Chinese Piano looks very different from the piano you might know.
After my little sister was born, my nickname changed to Da Qin (Big Piano), and my sister’s was Xiao Qin (Little Piano)
I think my life in China was pretty ordinary. My mother would take us to the Yellow Crane Tower every spring. I would dream about flying a giant golden crane over the city rooftops. Eventually, the large bird would take me and my sister home. After a long flight in the cool night, I didn’t want to go back.