My Name
by Victor Johnson
My last name was Harris, which my biological mother gave,
Living in an Orphange in the State of Michigan which didn’t know if it would be saved.
My first name is Victor which my adopted parents saved,
It means Victorious as I agree to behave.
I’m proud of my name as I have grown older at
Neighborhood kids bullied me but I’m a true soilder.
If I could do it over I wouldn’t change my name,
To show that I’m stronger to beat the game.
My nickname was given by the neighborhood kids,
Eggbird to Birman the change was in.
As I got older my talents turned to basketball and I dreamed I could fly,
The name Birdman was born and I didn’t understand why.
But now I’m a Poet and I travel all around,
Birdman313 will land softly on the Poetry ground.
PHOTOGRAPH: The author’s 9th grade photo at age 15.
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: This poem is how my nickname was given to me by the neighborhood kids, and the change from eggbird to Birdman.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Originally from Benton Harbor, Michigan, Victor Johnson received a B.A. in Social Science from John Wesley College in Owosso. He tried out for The NBA California Summer Pro-Basketball League, the Eastern League, several independent teams, and spent several years playing semi-pro basketball. In 1980, he moved to Houston. The author of four poetry books and three chapbooks, he has also been published in Forward Time Newspaper, Storm Magazine, Harbinger Asylum, Indiana Review Newsletter, The Permian Basin Poetry Society Anthology, and Silver Birch Press. He’s a member of the Austin Writers Roulette and host of the annual Spoken Word Contest at the National Black Book Festival. He appears in a Poetry Is Dead, a YouTube documentary by Weasel Patterson of Vagabonds Press.
Silver Birch Press 