Born into a name by Aida Bode (All About My Name Poetry Series)

Born into a name
by Aida Bode

A queen and a slave make the perfect
Human

A ruler and a servant make the unspoiled
Mortal

A visitor and a pilgrim make the shape of
My Name.

Aida was Verdi’s favorite masterpiece
and my father’s second choice for a name;

But I would have never been a good Aphrodite,
so far from Olympus, so far from the waves
I would disappoint pagans
and scare their gods away.

So, I turn my head to listen to the echo
of those who dare to call,
knowing that once upon a time
a second choice was a second chance.

AUTHOR’S PHOTO CAPTION: Wearing my name on the sleeve (November 2014).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Aida Bode is a writer, poet and translator from Korca, Albania. She’s the author of David and Bathsheba, a novel based on the Biblical story of King David and Bathsheba, the poetic collections True Cheese and Rated, as well as a quotes collection A Commuter’s Eye View. Her prose and poetry have been published and are forthcoming in The River Muse, Dr. Hurley’s Snake Oil Cure, Vayavya, Oddball Magazine, Boston Poetry Magazine, Yellow Chair Review, and more, as well as in multiple Albanian media sources outside and inside the country. Aida Bode is pursuing her MFA in creative fiction at SNHU.