Small paper nautilus,
cockleshell octopus,
two of her tentacles
soft wands for conjuring
calcium carbonate
into her miracle
shell, light and delicate,
white ribbed and tuberculed
elegant watercraft,
henceforth and constantly
hers for the captaincy.
Mark Totterdell’s poems have appeared widely in magazines and have occasionally won competitions. His collections are ‘This Patter of Traces’ (Oversteps Books, 2014) and ‘Mapping’ (Indigo Dreams Publishing, 2018).
Foxglove Journal 