My mother prayed for me
and when I came she called me Samuel,
which can sometimes mean Borrowed from God.

In Alexandria, Kentucky;
at Main Street Baptist Church;
in the women’s restroom;
in the sink, in fact;
she baptized me in the name of the Creator, and of the Christ, and of the Spirit.

My mother prayed for me
and when I came she called me Samuel,
which can sometimes mean Sent by God.

She wanted me for herself,
hadn’t wanted to birth me, if it meant sharing me.
Not her choice to make in the end,
but in the end, she chose to share,
if that was the only way to have me at all.

My mother prayed for me
and when I came she called me Samuel
which can sometimes mean Name of God.

The healer who pulled me from my mother
(I was already too large to leave on my own)
called me tall, called me handsome, called me white:
No excuse, he told the room, for me to fall, to fail.
The room nodded their agreement.

God called for me
and when I came God called me Samuel
and I said, It is I, Lord.

God called for me
and when I came God called me Samuel
and I asked, Do I have to, Lord.

God called for me
and when I came God called me Samuel
and I asked, Why me, Lord.

God called for me
and when I came God called me Samuel
and I said, No thank you, Lord.

God called for me
and when I did not come
God called again.