POESIS
the madrigal, volume v
Caretta Caretta
by amy bacon
For four weeks, we trekked the beach,
searched for patterns in the soft sand
formed by scooping flippers,
dug little trenches and erected bamboo fences
to protect the nests from attack.
In the afternoons, we drifted on lilos
on the teal sea, chain-smoked Malboros –
worked on our tans in forty degrees.
In the fifth and final week
we lay on our bellies in moonlight,
our eyes adjusting to the splendour
of the starry night – hushed
as we watched her emerge
from the calm water, ascend the beach –
surely, silently shifting the sand.
~ Lakonikos Bay, August 1996
Amy Bacon has previously been published in StepAway Magazine. Amy recently completed an MA in Creative Writing with The Open University, gaining a distinction. She enjoys exploring crossovers in poetry, art and music, and the connections between humans and nature in urban environments. Amy also enjoys taking long walks in Bristol, where she has lived and worked as a teacher since 2017.