‘Lessons In Taxonomy’

Photographer Carrie Cantalupo Sharp

Lessons In Taxonomy 

Pay no attention to the antlers shedding

Bloody velvet, the legs untested but primed

To fly at first fresh face transgression,

I feel a kinship with the ambush predators

Note the placement of the eyes, the shape

Of the teeth, the heft of the body resting

Against red dirt. I'm patient enough to trust

That it will come to me.

                                    And it will come to me.

When everything is moving, why shouldn't I 

Stay still? Let it stumble to me, euphoric, 

Exhausted from pushing through periwinkle,

The clover, spotted deadnettle, into my

Makeshift maw. Sure, it's no way to live,

But that's how I stay fed and safe

From the wolves

Gage Baldwin (He/They) is a gay, agender poet with roots in Oklahoma. His work centers his existence in the Queer Leather culture, using poetry to capture the present moment. Knowing how often Leather is erased from Queer history, Gage aims to document the trust, defiance, and intimacy within underground sexual rebellion, so future generations of Leatherqueers may feel connected to their past.

Carrie Cantalupo writes poetry, flash fiction and is new at visual arts. She has been published in Pike’s Peak, Making Waves, You Might Need to Hear This, Poetry Project Matters and The Closed Eye Open.