A Scream for the Sea
Landlubbers!
Shipwrecks!
Grockels!
Ahoy!
Climb the masts!
In the brig!
Avast ye!
Ahoy!
Breakwater!
Saltwater!
Tidewater!
Ahoy!
Where are the giant squid?
Where are the dolphin pods?
Where are the lobster pots?
Ahoy!
And the trawlers
In their port
Look like giraffes
In the zoo
Ahoy!
Salt encrusted
Barnacle clung
Metal rusted hull!
Ahoy!
This long concrete arm
Protects us from harm
Calm our harbour
Ahoy!
We feel them deep inside
The tears of those who died
Washed ashore with every tide
Ahoy!
Weary legged trawler sailors
Bearded boat captains
Deck hands and net-menders,
Ahoy!
A bobbing anchored light
A rhythmic flashing sight
A beacon in the night
A buoy!
A prayer for the wind
Some salt for the soul
A scream for the sea
Ahoy!
Robert Garnham 