What’s In A Name

My name my name
my name dearer to me
than winning the lottery
my name the core of me
the very soul of me
my name the key
to the door of me
my name the sound
that trills
to the note of me
my name the vessel
that fills
to the spill of me
for I am Rumpelstiltskin
known by that name
only by my dwarf-born kin

Ah Rumpelstiltskin
no more a secret
hushed for all ages
but now big and bold
across tabloid pages
Damn whoever told
my name y name
to the paparazzi
for they have spilt
the beans of me
unlit
the spark of me
unsung
the lark of me
unstrung
the bow of me
tolled
the very bell of me

Indeed tweaked
the inner nose of me.
Whoever it was that sold
my story to the press

May they be bone-weak
May they be hell-blessed

Copyright: from Goldilocks on CCTV (Frances Lincoln, 2011), © John Agard 2011, used by permission of the author and publisher

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