I want to change my name
I want to be called ‘cherished’
I want to be called ‘worthy’the old, bad names that bathed me in acid and fire
sometimes call out to me in my night terrors
sometimes they win…sometimes I lose-regardless…. my new names remain…sealed to my lips
©Vivian Zems
Smell The Coffee 
July 22, 2018 at 2:41 pm
Can’t describe the beauty of this poem enough in words…let just say.. WOWW
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 22, 2018 at 4:52 pm
Thank you 🙏🏾
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 22, 2018 at 3:23 pm
This is so good.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 22, 2018 at 4:51 pm
Thank you 😊
LikeLike
July 22, 2018 at 4:46 pm
I like your new names!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 22, 2018 at 4:50 pm
Thanks Annell!
LikeLike
July 22, 2018 at 5:32 pm
The best name, the strongest names, the truest names… are those we give ourselves, the ones we hold on too, the ones that bloom out of the lips and hearts of the people who love us best and see us clearest. I love this. The not-so-simple intensity of it. I love the depth of the longing, the resolve to claim what matters (even when the uglier bits of life try to steal it from us).
You are what you choose to be–cherished, worthy, real.
LikeLiked by 2 people
July 23, 2018 at 7:17 am
Great insight Magaly ❤️
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 22, 2018 at 7:21 pm
Absolutely love this!
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 23, 2018 at 7:16 am
Thank you 😊
LikeLike
July 22, 2018 at 7:48 pm
Changing your name changes everything.
LikeLiked by 2 people
July 23, 2018 at 7:16 am
It does!
LikeLike
July 24, 2018 at 12:31 pm
That’s thought provoking.. we need to call ourselves by those names first maybe… and then the world will follow.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 24, 2018 at 7:37 pm
Indeed- that’s how it should be😊
LikeLike
July 24, 2018 at 12:41 pm
There is definitely power in the names we use for ourselves. I am very intrigued by the last line, and my thoughts are similar to Thotpurge’s – sometimes we need to feel the power of those names changing how we feel about ourselves before we can expect others to use those names too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 24, 2018 at 7:37 pm
Great insight, Rommy! I absolutely agree😊
LikeLike
July 24, 2018 at 2:17 pm
The names which we give ourselves is what we are truly made of 💖 LOVE the fire and passion in this poem, Viv 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 24, 2018 at 7:36 pm
Thanks Sanaa🙏🏾
LikeLike
July 24, 2018 at 2:48 pm
Oh, these new names are beautiful. And they make us the person we are, more than that bitterness or those apathetic tags, given to us by the world.
Well-penned.
-HA
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 24, 2018 at 7:36 pm
I quite agree! Thank you 😊
LikeLike
July 24, 2018 at 5:37 pm
I love those names! Yes, claim them! They are yours.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 24, 2018 at 7:35 pm
Absolutely!
LikeLike
July 24, 2018 at 7:55 pm
Sealed on your lips and…written on your heart. Just like in the 70;’s somen chose new surnames to disassociate themselves from the old patriarchy, these new names christen you into a new life.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 25, 2018 at 12:42 am
They do, indeed.
LikeLike
July 24, 2018 at 8:33 pm
Love it, Viv: ‘regardless…. my new names remain…sealed to my lips’.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 25, 2018 at 12:42 am
Thanks Kim!
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 24, 2018 at 9:02 pm
This speaks to me so very much, because I DID legally change my name, and for the same reasons. I’ve never regretted it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 24, 2018 at 10:22 pm
Bravo!💪🏽
LikeLike
July 25, 2018 at 1:18 am
kaykuala
I want to change my name
I want to be called ‘cherished’
Good name certainly! If only names can influence our destiny, perhaps it does!
Hank
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 27, 2018 at 7:22 am
Perhaps, if we allow them. Thank you 😊
LikeLike
July 25, 2018 at 8:25 pm
Every person needs several sets of names… some should be sealed and left inside.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 26, 2018 at 4:37 am
Bless your new names…And congratulations on your book!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 27, 2018 at 7:17 am
Thank you… and thank you 😊
LikeLike
July 26, 2018 at 6:16 pm
Precious, and powerful!
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 27, 2018 at 7:16 am
Thanks Frank !😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 27, 2018 at 12:22 pm
😇
LikeLike
July 26, 2018 at 10:25 pm
To believe in oneself – to nurture from within is very important. Not always easy.
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 27, 2018 at 7:15 am
…, but essential 😊 Thank you 🙏🏾
LikeLike
July 28, 2018 at 4:16 pm
I am sure we would all like to be known by the positive names.. worthy.. cherished. Yes.
LikeLike
July 30, 2018 at 1:58 pm
This is so beautiful! The last line is pure magic ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 30, 2018 at 9:04 pm
Thank you Neha!🙏🏾
LikeLiked by 1 person
July 31, 2018 at 4:42 am
You’re welcome, Vivian ❤
LikeLike