The older I get the more I think
about changing my last name back
to its original state before Grandpa
had it changed at Ellis Island when
he immigrated to the States from
Greece in 1917.
The authorities couldn’t handle the
Greek language or alphabet very well,
so they changed his surname from
Hadjiyannis to Hanch.
Nowadays, many folks confuse Hanch
with the German, Hansch. No, I have
to explain, different country, different
culture and name.
Other folks pronounce it, Hench or
Hinch. Still others ask, how do you
pronounce that? Hanch, I tell them,
like ranch except with an “H.”
Once a woman who had just met my
wife asked her for her last name. And
when she told her, Hanch, the woman
raised her eyebrows and said to her,
“That’s not a very pretty name.”
Anyway, I’m about to turn 74-years
old, and it seems like a name change
at this stage in life would be more
trouble than it would be worth.
Besides, I’ve had enough trouble
with the American version.
I suppose I should just concede and
quote that which Gary Cooper said
to a bad hombre in a bar scene from
the Western movie, The Virginian—
“You wanna call me that, smile.
So with Gary Cooper’s six-shooter
stuck in his belly, the bad guy smiled.
-30-
Chris Hanch 1-4-2021
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