Childhood

Who are you?

"Does she have a name?" A young voice spoke. I opened my eyes slowly. A girl about my age stood in front of me. She had long dark hair pulled back into a ponytail, and had an orange bag slung over her shoulder. Realizing this girl meant no harm, I decided to engage her in conversation.

"What do you mean?" I asked her, extremely confused.

"Your doll. What's her name?" The girl asked again, pointing to the object clutched in my hand.
Oh. I'd never really thought of it. I can't believe I completely forgot to name my doll.

"I don't know. I haven't thought of one," I simply stated. The girl furrowed her thin eyebrows. She looked as if she was deep in thought.

"Umi," she blurted out. I had no idea what this girl was trying to tell me. Noticing my confused expression, the girl proceeded to explain herself.

"Umi. That should be her name. Umi means 'ocean' in Japanese. Her eyes are very blue," she explained. I could see this girl was having a hard time trying to communicate, but I understood what she was saying. My doll's eyes were very blue.

"Alright, I guess my doll's name is Umi then!" I giggled. The girl smiled.

"I am Hokama Nana," she said, the smile lingering in her face.
First name last, and last name first.

"I am Zivkovik Anya, but you can call me Anya," I said, attempting to hide my excitement at the possibility of making a new friend.

"Anya. That is a pretty name! Want to play?" She asked. I nodded my head vigorously.

Nana and I climbed trees and played with Umi. We played house, pirates, you name it! She didn't even mind that I called her by her first name instead of her last name!

I completely lost track of time until Nana stopped suddenly and turned to me.
"Anya, I need to go home, it's lunch time. Would you like to play sometime tomorrow?" She asked, and I eagerly agreed. We both parted ways and headed home. I was very excited to tell Mama and Dad about the new friend I made!