Saul, who was also known as Paul

But Saul, who was also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fixed his gaze on him, and said, “You who are full of all deceit and fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to make crooked the straight ways of the Lord? Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and not see the sun for a time.” – Acts 13:9-11

This was at least his second transformation
and I admire the way Luke buried it in the moment
the sun might have been bright in Paphos

and Saul, who was also known as Paul,
was blinding someone, as he’d been blinded
on the path to Damascus.

It’s tempting to condemn Saul, who was also known as Paul,
for this, but who of us hasn’t wanted
to make someone see what they’re not seeing:
what we’ve been through, when words
have failed us?

And who hasn’t wanted to change their name
to something less obvious, leaving no forwarding
remarks, no anchor line to hold us to what has been?