[Newspoetry] Sold to the highest bidder

[Nick Berveiler]

www.cnn.com/2001/US/07/27/black.cnna/

Newspoetry form:

Identity crisis - write a poem as if you were named after a corporation.

Sold to the highest bidder

I was born in New York City,
after appearing on CNN for the first time,
my family and I moved to Redmond, Washington.
We have a big house with everything
from a swimming pool,
to corporate offices inside.

Commercials and more commercials,
Magazine features and "in-depth" interviews,
TV shows and billboards.
My childhood is known around the world.

My parents love my identity.
They say I am lucky.
How can I explain to them that I feel used when
they knew I would be used from the day I was born.

I wonder if an expensive college education
will fix the damage done to my childhood.
To this day, I cannot hide my name.

"Where do you want to go today?"

I don't answer anyone who asks me that question anymore.
The PR folks used to give me lines to memorize.
Back then, I would say anything to make my parents happy.
It took me a long time to realize that it didn't matter.

The kids in high school used to call me "antitrust",
that was after being called
"McDonalds", "Nike", and "Disney"
in grade school.
I wasn't allowed to have nicknames.

I would run home crying.
The corporate PR would tell me
everything is all right,
and then put me on TV.

With a corporate logo on my birth certificate,
drivers license, and any other form of identification,
There is no doubt about it,
My name is Microsoft.