LEE BO RI

     “Mom, why is my name Bori? Kids in my school tease me. They say that I’m a plant and keep saying barley. (In Korean barley is pronounced as ‘Bo Ri’)” Said an 8 year old girl.
     “It is because they don’t know the meaning Bori. Bori means a very good thing in Buddhism. It means that the person find enlightenment through practicing asceticism.” said the mom trying to cheer up the girl.
     “I don’t understand it. How can Barley mean a good thing? I want to change my name mom.”
     “Bori, don’t be so foolish! Bo means in Chinese character to help others, and Ri means beneficial person to others. Do you see the meaning?”

     My name is Bori. When I was young I hated my name. My parents always tried to convince me that it has a moral meaning. Even though, it had a good meaning to the word itself, I didn’t like the fact that it was pronounced the same as the plant ‘barley’. I got teased by my friends in school because of my name. I think I had a lot of nicknames due to my name back in my elementary school. I wanted to change it if I could do it. I was young, spoiled, only thought about myself, full of self-confidence and greedy back then. But as I grew up I think that my name wasn’t terrible as I thought. In fact, I think that if my name wasn’t Bori, I would not be what I am. I would have remained as a spoiled and greedy child. I personally believe that names do affect people in ways they don’t realize.

     If I had a different name, I think I would have had a different personality. Since my name has Chinese character which means, helping others and being beneficial to others, I think I tried to live up to my name as I grew older. My grandmother would always scold me if I did something wrong and she said that I should live by my name. Being beneficial to people near me and helping people who needs help : This is the thing that every grown up would emphasize to me, since it is the meaning my name has. Teachers who had taught me when I was young said that I should think more about my name. I got frustrated with all those sayings. I mean who wouldn’t? Think about it. If you go to school, you hear your teacher telling the meaning of your name. If you go home, you hear your mom talking about your name. If you go to your neighbor, you hear them saying about your name. Even the first thing a stranger would notice is your name on your name tag!

     'Why does every grown up emphasize being nice to people? I don’t get it! Why do I need to listen to these things? I hate my name!’

     I didn’t want to get scolded and be compared with my name. That is when I started to help others. Not because I felt worthwhile while doing it, just because I didn’t want to hear nagging from others about myself and my name. I know it is wrong to do volunteering work because the fact that I didn’t want to hear nagging, but I did it anyway.

     My dad always went abroad to Chile for one month every year for volunteering work. Obviously, I went with him not because I wanted to, but I just want to get away from all those things that grown-ups would say about my name. I went abroad for a couple of years that I got to know few people over there. There was this girl who was older than me who I got close with, when I went to work there.

     “Hey, you came again! Wow, it’s been such a long time!” said the girl.
     “I know! I’ ready to do it. Is there anything I can help?” I replied.
     “What?” she was surprised and her eye were widened.
     “I’m so interested to do this! Did I say something wrong?”
     “No, it just seemed that you changed. When you first came here, you would do only things that I asked you to do. It said on your face ‘I don’t want to be here doing this. I hate this work!’ and you just showed that you were doing this because somebody forced you. But right now…!! You just asked me if there was anything to do!!”
     “Ohhhhh…………”
     “Look! You are trying to find work by yourself! I got surprised!! No wonder why your name is Bori. Doesn’t it mean like getting understanding and helping others in Buddhism?”
     “Yes, in fact, that is true!”
     This was the moment that my thought about my name has changed completely. Since then I tried to live up to my name and the meaning my name has. From than grown-ups didn’t scold or nag me anymore. But I still liked to volunteer and help others. It became a part of my nature; trying to help others and volunteering. No one told me to do it, but I just enjoyed and felt worthwhile while I was working more and more. From that moment, things about me changed a lot. I began to help others beside me and learn to respect others and be less greedy. I thought more positively about things that happened to me, instead of being so depressed by things near me. I started to listen carefully to everyone even though it was nagging and scolding me. I tried to change and live by my name; Being beneficial to people near me and helping people who needs help. Well, yeah. I think that I have been living by my name and due to my name I have changed. A Lot I mean.

Yesterday as I was taking down the elevator a teacher asked me.
     “Your name is Bori as in the Buddhism?”
     “Yes! Do you know what it mean?” I asked him.
     “Well doesn’t it have something to do with helping others?”
     “Yes, it means Being beneficial to people near me and helping people who needs help. And I like my name very much!” said proudly beaming a large smile at him.