Heard In The Shell Poem by Nan Williamson

heard in the shell

For D. after breast cancer diagnosis

sea waves rise and crash
inside my keepsake conch
dark panic swells
no mere intimations but chaos
roaring in my ear
prophetic shell my skull's blood
rushes out of control
this primal trumpet echoes fear

let me suck black seeds glistening caviar
crush papaya soft flesh in my mouth
don'ttellthekidsorsistersmother
this soft ripe globe hold in your palm
cup the bruised apple
circle areola with your thumb
crush it in your lips before the dawn

waking beside you sun
on the morning bed I dreamed
you saved me from the drowning waves
lift up the conch again maybe
there'll be new music in the shell
and you will hold it let me hear
today's green song