Atticus to Zeppelin

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Classroom photo, mine. 2012

“Recess teacher!!”
That would be me
and anyone else over 3 feet tall
who has a whistle.

“Hey guys, just so you know,
my name’s Mrs. Collins”,
flashing my cartoon-y fish
logo with my fancy-ish name.
“What’re your names?”

“I’m Atticus, this is Zeppelin.”

“Well, those are some pretty big
names,” I remark, and proceed                                                                                                        to untangle the playground snafu.

They saunter off while I muse about
the challenge of the names
they are saddled with, embattled with
in the spelling from K through twelfth,
and I wonder what parents–
readers of classics?
rock and roll fans?–
would do that to a five year old,
giving them, not a name to grace them
or fit well but letters too many
to spell when you are five
and all you want to do is                                                                                                                     play on the swings
and fly……….

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