From Mattie to Matthew
By Mat Zulpo
I have a name
A name that I despise
It feels foreign to me, even though its been mine since before I was born
It leaves a bad taste in my mouth, bitter and sickening
So I cut it in half.
So similar yet a world of difference
Just 3 letters less and suddenly I was me
But just like me it wasn’t perfect
So I changed it again
Add 4 letters to the 3 I liked so much
Take the original change one letter and add one more
A name from a book
The same book that told me that what I am is wrong
Told me to be a housewife when I wanted to be a working man
And from that book my takeaway was a name
A name that wasn’t always mine
The name of the patron saint of accountants
The job I will someday have
my colleagues will call me Matthew
Because I was always him
But I wasn’t always he