We hadn’t seen each other since Covid began and had forgotten each other’s names.
It was at the gym and the pulsating music upstairs during a class made hearing difficult.
Martin, he said.
Pardon?
Martin as in Martin Luther King.
Ah. I’m John.
Pardon?.
John as in John the Baptist.
Ahh, he said.
We shook hands and had a brief chat over the music.
Henceforth when we saw each other, especially after a long time, I’d remember him as Martin Luther King and he’d remember me as the preacher who baptised sinners in the river Jordan.
*which famous person first comes to mind when you say your first name?
John Malone 
I’m happy to rely on my own good self, as the ‘famous’ person. I’m quite famous, campared to the vast majority of people. Well, in my own small region I am, anyway, and if people have never heard of me in my own ‘spot’, do I want to know them? Nah, not really …
Haha!
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a well-thought out response, Carolyn. I should have added Martin is of African descent so the King reference fits regarding skin colour but I have a feeling that I look nothing like John the Baptist 🙂 for that matter, does anyone?
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You don’t see many photographs of those biblical leaders, do you?
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we don’t Carolyn 😦 what’s wrong with these Biblical figures? didn’t they ever take selfies? 🙂
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They didn’t have our Martin Christmas there, snapping away!
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O Carolyn: I love your Martin Christmas comment: so precious, so funny 🙂 LOL 🙂 🙂
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Martin is a very special person in the world of poetry in South Australia. He is recording images that will become the history of this poetry scene we’re living in …
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So funny and I so get this. Once those names are established they never go away. )
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thanks Beth; I struggled with this one so I’m really glad you liked it 🙂
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My father had named me after P.B. Shelley, the famous English poet who wrote numerous romantic poetry. Unfortunately, he never told me about him until it was too late. I thought he had named me after the Hindi word ‘shaily’ which stands for ‘a school or art’ or ‘style of art’. So, in class 10, I ‘fixed the spelling mistake’ while filling board exam forms. My father found out when he saw the result card.
So, it would have been too much of a hassle to get it changed. He let the name stay.
I’m glad since I have my own ‘style’ and am nothing like ‘Shelley’ anyway! 😁😁😁
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I agree; I love much of Shelley but I’m glad you have your own ‘voice’; I honour it; what’s that saying? ‘vive la difference’ 🙂
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Nice way to remember people 🙂 In our place children were named after Gods and Goddesses 🙂 Lakshmi is the Goddess of wealth and I was named after my grandmothers 🙂
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that’s a beautiful name to go through life with 🙂
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I am Ed, from my middle name – I am John Edward; but my dad went by John, so the family called me Eddie, then when I got a bit older (twelve!) I insisted on being called Ed. I get the “Mr. Ed” reference A LOT, so I have learned to make the sound of a horse chortling and saying, “Aw, Wilbur!” 😀
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LOL 🙂 that is precious; I’m glad you play up to it 🙂
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King 👑David … of course 😎
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of course; I would have thought nothing less 🙂
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well I have a giant princess and a constellation [hindu] that goes by my name 🙂
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you’ve done very well then; I would love it for a constellation to be named after me 🙂
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