My mind at sea drifts far away,
To that place far from land,
Point Nemo called: only waters fey,
Thousands of miles from beach and sand.
Of course, there must be that place,
So distant from human attention,
Far from homeland, even from space,
Where all is held in currents’ suspension.
Named for Jules Vern’s Captain Nemo,
A mytho-poetic explorer,
A role in which he is so primo,
‘Mid Southern Ocean’s rogue wave roarer.
Endless skies above, oceans below,
Is this a place of sanctuary,
With mysteries for me to know?
Or, empty of life, a cemetery?
Francis Conlon is a retired and recovering teacher. For the past 20 years, he has worked as a seasonal river ranger and boat inspector at Yampa River State Park in northwest Colorado. He has published in the local Valley Voice and in Westward Quarterly. He currently lives in Salt Lake City, Utah.