They Called Me
like Gretchen
a big boxy girl
who lived up
the street, Moose,
The Bigger, she's
a brick house
mighty mighty
I was Moose,
The Shorter
a younger version
just as chubby
they said
became Lizzie
after my Confirmation name
Saint Elizabeth they
chanted Lizzie is a Lezzie
at summer camp but
we all were then
and when I went out
as a short-haired
boy in a ballcap
I'd be Lee for no
reason except
it was shorter
my last first name
syllable spelt wrong
on purpose to be familiar
a beloved blue jeans brand
or else it would be L-i-e
and nobody wants
to be called that
in Spanish class
I was Leanna which
wasn't Spanish but
something I'd invented
to sound that way
and passing notes
with Nancy was I Star
or Moon or was she?
My many names nest one
inside another
matryoshka-ed
self-contained
