Dragon Cow

Dragon Cow
West Chester, PA
Summer 2017


When I taught in China, in 2012, I asked my students to give me a Chinese name.  They had all sorts of names for me but none of them seemed strong enough for me.

"What about Dragon Lady,?" I suggested. After all, it was the Year of the Dragon.

Initially, that was frowned upon as it had a negative connotation. However, after two weeks with me, my students thought it was a fitting name.  So I became Long Nv.

Once the name was settled, we all worked diligently together to help me pronounce this name.  Long was not the problem. But Nv was a bit of a challenge.

"No, Bridget, it is Nu."

"No, New, like this, big circle on the mouth."

"No, it is Noo."

I couldn't hear these subtle differences and finally I got tired of trying to get it.  So I issued an edict. "It is pronounce New in the United State and that is how I am going to say it, Long New."

And so it was.  But then I meet a Chinese woman in my neighborhood and I told her my name.  Immediately, she started on my poor pronunciation. And after several attempts I told her the story of my edict in China.  My name is Long Nv (New).

"OK, OK, I understand but sometimes you call yourself Dragon Lady and sometimes you call yourself Dragon Cow," she laughingly told me.

I thought about it and told her, "That's OK.  It's the same thing."