What's in a Name?

Industrious Spear King
The words strung together
Make a nonsense phrase,
But what do they mean?

Industrious means hard-working
But I don't live up to that.
I can work when it's necessary
Though I'd rather have fun...

But the two aren't mutually exclusive
And I know I am really not lazy.
I'm only imperfect and
I can always strive to improve.

A spear is a weapon.
I suppose I am that;
But nobody wields me,
I fight for myself.

But even then, perhaps
My spear is a better "pruning-hook".
I can do so much good
If I nurture and shape, tend and inspire.

Then there is king.
I am most proud of this name,
But it wasn't given to me;
I inherited it - what is my claim?

Not every man with a title
Is well-remembered.
My blood is common, but I can choose
To be noble in spirit and heart.

My parents chose my names, but
I don't think they knew the meanings.
The second is a family name, but the first
Was just a syllabic sequence.

What does a name say
About a person?
I am tied to my names,
But not to their meanings.

Every word, every language
Has pre-prescribed meanings,
But a person cannot be contained
By these words.

Head, arm, and heart, but
People are more
Than the sum of their parts
What is a soul? - - words can't say

On the surface my name
Means industrious,
Means spear,
Means king.

But these cannot define me.
Underneath it all, I am...
Whoever I choose to be.

By Emily Roy

(Written for a poetry class at SVSU winter 2022, this is the 3.0 version of the poem)