Katrina Kaye

“Those who have been told the truth
should not be taken for those
who have been scorned.”

The first time I liked
the sound of my name
it fell from your crooked lips.

Seemingly foreign,
yet easily interwoven into
ringlets framing my perception.

You speak each syllable sunshine
mixed with the awkwardness of the moon,
reflecting brilliance no matter the cadence.

For a fleeting moment,
in the melody of the occasion,
I too am fooled.

I see myself birthed from clam shell,
goddess gripping bow and arrow,
my words woven into golden strings.

You tricked me.
It isn’t just your sycophantic words
and slips of tongue.

It is in the way I see my reflection,
the shine of myself mirrored in your clouded eyes,
a strange smile readily returned.

The name you give me,
a gift,
more beautiful than I can ever be.

“Dulcinea” is previously published in Fevers of the Mind (2021).