I was traveling today so I’m sliding in under the wire here with my pantoum. There’s the form (which you’ll notice requires quatrains, and numerous repeating lines) and then we chose to use the words certainty and/or flight (or, in my case, fly).

I worked on two different poems this month and didn’t adore either one, but this is the one I’m most comfortable with.

So Much of Who You Are

So much of who you are is what you’re called

like a hermit crab becomes his empty shell.

Be it oddball, beauty, class clown, geek,

it’s certain and prescriptive as a mother cell.

Like a hermit crab, becoming his empty shell

or maybe more a puzzle, the chicken and the egg?

Is it certain and prescriptive as a mother cell

or do you name the name yourself, by who you are?

Maybe more a puzzle, the chicken and the egg:

First you breathe, then squawk, then try to fly.

You name the name yourself, by who you are

I’m here and true, myself, beloved til I die

First you breathe, then squawk, then try to fly

Whether oddball, beauty, class clown, geek

Say, I’m here and true, myself, beloved til I die

So much of who you are is what you’re called

All my poetry sisters wrote them too, and ya’ll, they are GOOD!!!
This is a weak way of doing this, but I’m just going to link to Kelly’s here and then you can follow HER links to everyone else’s. Is that ok?

Cheers, gang….