Lindsay Barnhart lives and writes in Lansing, Michigan. 

An Honest Poem About My Dog 
By Lindsay Barnhart

my dog’s name is Spirit, and he is a boy.
do not let his small size and
perfectly practiced head toss
fool you, for
he is a boy.
I’m aware
that his fur is lascivious
thick and pure white
that his ears
brown to go with his eyes
are frankly beautiful.
It’s clear that his practiced side eye
looks to have been trained by a professional modeling agency and
that he’s able to whine with the urgency of
a middle aged woman desperate
to speak to someone’s manager.

but please, for the sake of his
fragile masculinity,
know
without doubt,
that my dog is a boy.