The Name Jar

Through the school bus window, Unhei looked out at the strange buildings and houses on the way to her new school. It was her first day, and she was both nervous and excited.
She fingered the little block of wood in her pocket and remembered leaving her grandmother at the airport in Korea. Her grandmother had wiped away Unhei’s tears and handed her an ink pad and a small red satin pouch.
“Your name is inside,” she had said.
My name? Unhei had wondered.
Again she took out the red pouch to look at the wooden block with her name carved in it. As she ran her fingers along the grooves and ridges of the Korean characters, she pictured her grandmother’s smile.

“Is that thing for show and tell?” a boy asked Unhei, surprising her.
Unhei looked up as more kids leaned over.
“No…it’s mine,” Unhei answered, quickly putting the pouch back in her pocket.
“Are you new here? What’s your name?” a girl asked.      “Unhei,” said Unhei.
“Ooh-ney?” the girl asked, scrunching up her face.
“Oooh, oooh, oooh-ney!” some kids chanted.
“No, no,” Unhei corrected. “It’s spelled U-N-H-E-I. It’s pronounced Yoon-hye.”
“Oh, it’s Yoo-hey,” the boy said. “Like ‘You, hey!’ What about ‘Hey, you!””
Just then, the bus pulled up to the school and the doors opened. Unhei hurried to get off.
“You-hey, bye-bye!” the kids yelled as she left. Unhei felt herself blush.