Poem-a-Day

Imported, my given name barely sounds
like the Arabic. I barter two selves
on my passport. Border control doesn’t
look up. I, civil, lift my arms, balance.
I correct my presence, my moniker:
pronounced as Zeina, which means adornment,
not Zenia, which stands for adulteress, 
though I never said I’d be loyal. It’s 
terrible, I know, this reading error. 
That a hummingbird flies to a lightbulb
in search of nectar. Isn’t it reckless,
my immigration to the wrong language
now that the banks collapsed? It’s magical
how my daughters’ accent is gone. Haha. 

How my daughters’ accent is gone, haha,
now that the banks collapsed. It’s magical,
my immigration to the wrong language
in search of nectar. Isn’t it reckless,
that a hummingbird flies to a lightbulb?
Terrible, I know, this reading error.
Though I never said I’d be loyal, it’s 
not Zenia, which stands for adulteress. 
Pronounced as Zeina, which means adornment, 
I correct my presence, my moniker.
Look up: I, civil, lift my arms, balance
on my passport. Border control doesn’t like
the Arabic I barter. Two selves,
imported. My given name barely sounds.