My Names
My secret names are known
by those who love me.
My secret names are darkness, giver, envy,
happiness, laughter, pain, goodness,
malevolence, and many more.
My secret names live in the mycelia,
the blabbermouths who tell my story
from root to root, strong trunk
to weakest twig.
My secret names live in the sources
of the rivers that carry them through
rich green, concrete, grey dryness,
to become one with the oceans.
My secret names echo from peak to peak
from the Alps to the Karakorum
to the Himalayas, almost die of thirst
in the Gobi or the Sahara,
carried on the thought winds.
My Names have been engraved
in the blood of my children,
in all their beauty, all their ugliness.
Some of my lovers guessed
my names, and, like Rumpelstiltskin,
I disintegrated from the rage,
the shame, and the nakedness
of being known.
One day, when I must
ask for admittance, I shall call them out
with pride and the knowledge
that they will be accepted
as my true names.
~
Rose Mary Boehm is a German-born British national living and writing in Lima, Peru, and the author of two novels, short stories, as well as eight poetry collections and one chapbook. Her poetry has been published widely in mostly US poetry reviews (online and print). She is a 'Pushcart' and 'Best of the Net' nominee. All her recent books are available on Amazon. The new chapbook, The Matter of Words, was published a few weeks ago. A new full-length collection has been accepted for publishing. https://www.rose-mary-boehm-poet.com/.
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