If I were brave enough, I would name myself Aphelion: the point in the Earth’s orbit where it is furthest from the Sun. I invite you to read too much into it, believe that I am saying I am at my furthest from the Son, and His Father, and the ugly duckling that is the Holy Ghost. Break down the etymology: “helios” as in “Sun” and “apo” as in “away from,” or else “apó” as in “grandchild” in Tagalog. What a coincidence: I am far from the Sun but still its grandchild.

Choosing names
is the first act of
creating.*

*This stanza is taken from a line in Gina Apostol’s Insurrecto (2018).

Caroliena Cabada is an MFA candidate for Creative Writing and Environment at Iowa State University, and holds a BA in Chemistry from New York University. She serves as co-managing editor of Flyway: Journal of Writing & Environment…