SHOPKEEPERS' NAME
Abyss & Bridge
Renée Gregorio

In a small shop in Xania
I meet two young shopkeepers
with hallucinogenic names.
One tells me everything’s made in Greece
as she leads me around the store
with her vibrancy.
The other remarks
that in the current economy
women are the first to go,
in the world of work,
the first to be seen as unnecessary.

My shopkeepers do not offer
their names until asked.
Stunned at the power they evoke,
I ask further: what might it mean
to live into those names? They laugh,
unaware of their shining.

Oh, Panagiota!
Look at all the clothes
you tempted me with—

I bought more than I needed
in the glow of your generous attention,
bought your charm and laughter, your warmth.
Panagiota, Panagia—all-holy one—
I visit your chapels
everywhere on Crete,
each dedicated to your namesake.

Oh, Olympia!
sanctuary of ancient Greece,
classic site of the first Olympic games.
In your temenos—temple of Hera,
temple of Zeus, altars of sacrifice.

Olympia, Panagiota,
I remember you.
And now I know that sometimes
      what’s powerfully given,
             like our names,
asks us to shed what’s deeply held—
              our insignificance.


©2021 Renée Gregorio