Spira Mirabilis, the logarithmic or “miraculous” spiral that widens with every curve yet maintains its shape, is observed in astronomy, biology, meteorology, coastal erosion, etc.
Upon a beach & under galaxies …………….revolving, filled with stars, ……..coiled on itself, a nautilus ……..whose spiral is “miraculous” lies tiger-striped, sea-scoured, its sacristies
more proof of nature’s winding symmetries. …………….A wave confronts the shore’s ……..unraveling resolve, the loss ……..of coastal sand disastrous, the crescent of its carving, by degrees,
a slow retreat…Unleashed, a storm gives rise …………….to more than just brute force ……..shaped like a wheel, calamitous:
……..its track is heading straight for us, winds gaining speed… Far off, a raptor’s eyes catch sight of prey, pursuit we recognize …………….by how it dives, its course
……..a gyre determined, dangerous ……..(& logarithmic, more or less) till—sated, safe—it shelters in the trees, beneath the limbs a hurricane will seize.
An insect whirls, dizzy as it flies …………….in search of any source ……..that shines, however hazardous. ……..Translucent wings, diaphanous, dry up in heat: stuck to the lamp, it dies,
fooled by synthetic sun. More mysteries: ……………..the eye’s corneal layers ……..(a shield for its glassy surface, ……..tender, tear-fed, aqueous) resolve into a helix, vortices
of bundled nerves…What joins us all to these? …………….Time’s pulse; the spirals’ course ……..or hidden presence, marvelous
……..& all-pervasive, measureless. The nautilus, left on the sand to freeze, holds thirty chambers, small eternities …………….that no one occupies,
……..yet time & space are limitless ……..& time itself may have to pass before we learn the same geometries reside in our unfolding destinies.