SUE the T. rex meets the new Spinosaurus fossil at the Field Museum
Elena Zhang
Elena Zhang is a Chinese American writer and mother living in Chicago. Her work can be found in HAD, The Citron Review, Ghost Parachute, and Lost Balloon, among other publications, and has been selected for Best Microfiction 2024. She’s on Twitter @ezhang77.
Why Taylor Loved It:
I took this piece because I love the concept and I think the writing style fits well with the idea overall. It's so rare that love poems give me something fresh/new/unique. Like do I need to confess I'm an anti love poem gal? Because I was, until I read this one. A love poem from one museum fossil to another? Like are we kidding?
Also, there aren't dinosaurs in this poem just for the sake of putting dinosaurs in. (Although clearly liking dinosaurs is my whole personality). The idea that one day we will all be gone, but that who we love remains, and that love can remind us we're alive, is so powerful and so important. To capture that through the iconic Sue fossil and her literal replacement is honestly genius. I wish I had written this poem.
I try to keep these relatively short, but pay attention to the tone and imagery in this poem as well. Persona poems can be difficult to nail down but this one feels like a masterclass. “Come over here and tug on my furcula,” and “play your spine like a marimba”...like ARE WE KIDDING??? This poem is raging with personality, spunk, and endearment. Frankly, I’m purchasing my ticket to go see these two lovers ASAP.
Interview:
Talk to me about the concept behind this poem? A love poem between two fossils in a museum? Swoon!
When I first heard about the spinosaurus replacing the SUE the t. rex in the lobby at the Field Museum, I initially imagined SUE to be jealous. But the more I thought about it, the loneliness she must have felt for all those years, the hopefulness of love after death, falling in love seemed to make more sense to me.
As you approached the form for this, why did prose stand out to you as necessary to the content?
I feel like when expressing love, especially after a million years, it would want to come out all in a rush.
Why did you choose Team Taylor?
Dinosaur poems!!
***note from Taylor: hell yeah