Newsletter – May 15, 2026
On my morning walk a couple weeks ago I got the chance to meet this shy box turtle who wasn’t too keen on me getting so close. I thought about this turtle and as well as the knitted turtle I bought from my friend Em while creating another children’s poem.
I learned a couple things about turtles in my search for correct terminology and I want you to know about one before you read the poem. I use the word Testudines which has four syllables (tess-TOO-din-eez) with the emphasis is on the second syllable.
(Testudines are an order of reptiles made up of turtles, terrapins, and tortoises.)
Myrtle the Turtle
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Myrtle the turtle was known for her girdle,
A fine looking girdle, they say.
Most every turtle is known for their shelling,
The patterns that turtles display.
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“Not Myrtle,” the other Testudines said,
“She flounces her girdle with poise,
And she’ll lift up her beak to give you a tweak
If you make any impolite noise.”
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The date of the scute competition arrived
And Myrtle showed up in her girdle.
But how could they tell if her scutes were all cute
With the girdle creating that hurdle?
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“Get rid of the girdle,” the judges told Myrtle,
“In order to show us your shelling.”
Embarrassed and shy, she moved to comply,
In her eyes the tears began welling.
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Every Testudine looked on in shock
And saw what the girdle was hiding,
All Myrtle’s scutes were totally plain
With no pattern or marking presiding.
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“The Unadorned Queen!” the judges exclaimed,
All kneeling as best they were able,
The whole shelling crowd then hoisted her high,
To make Myrtle the head of the table.
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Queen Myrtle reigned longer than forty-nine years
Then passed on her girdle to Mortise
His reign lasted almost for ninety-nine years
Because he, of course, was a tortoise.
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Like the last poem I shared, I added hashtags to separate the stanzas.
I hope you enjoyed it. I was tickled when I discovered the ending. I hadn’t seen that coming.
I had no idea where this poem was headed when I began, just the rhymes of turtle, Myrtle and girdle. It developed as I was writing it and searching for additional rhyming words for the end of each line.
If you want to get into the poetic weeds with me, the stanzas are pretending to be four lines alternating between four and three feet, but are, in fact, two lines of seven feet each. That’s where the rhymes fall. The very first line informed me how the poem wanted to sound.
Here’s the original turtle my friend knitted.
She sits on our dining room table and lends her soft shell to support my phone.
Myrtle, they say, is a very good friend,
And she is a really cute turtle.
TTFN
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Eric Margerum 