sterling-elizabeth arcadia
love poem dragging a poet who doesnt deserve it
did i ruin my relationship w my tattooer by kissing his gf in front of him last night
did i ruin my body by making it trans
can you ruin a book for yourself by reading it [to the end | all the way through]
(did i ruin [...] ) (did i ruin [...] myself)
maybe
when i woke up i wished i wasnt
here and so i read half of aeon ginsbergs greyhound so
see something OR say something
ill say something
ill tell you that there was a poem
i wanted to read you
but it wrested its leash away from me
(took [itself out of my hands | itself from my hand])
as for the seers, who can say
gorgeous gorgeous goose
lets do the shit out of this thing
i got into birdwatching when i was in rehab
but is my favorite poet a little bit of a fascist
or [have you been cancelled too | was it just me]
i dont think it matters
even though my gender is a little flip-top on a hollow bottle –
i want you to open me on the edge of a counter like a crown cap
will you ruin my gender with your body
will you ruin my gender with your body
sterling-elizabeth arcadia (she/they) is a trans poet and diy tattooer in baltimore, where she watches birds and cares for her cat. her work has been published in Stone of Madness Press, New Delta Review, Poetry.onl, and elsewhere.