Red Admirals – a poem by Katerina Neocleous

Red Admirals

She mends her dress in rough stitches
cresting recklessly along the hem,
pulls the long thread out

in a wide sweep, like an archer
with a bow, over the painted eye
on a boat’s prow

as she courses with the stars
or fate, whatever colour
the sail is – psyche’s wings.

If one butterfly can cause
a tidal wave, just by flapping,
imagine a fleet.

Pity a ripple could drown her.

Katerina Neocleous is assistant editor of the poetry journal, Obsessed With Pipework. She is widely published in magazines; and has two pamphlets forthcoming in 2019 – one from Maytree Press, and another through Obsessed With Pipework and Flarestack Publishing. She is also a mother and gardener. For more information please visit her at visionsfromhell.wordpress.com