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Tempestuous Storm

Time and tide again waits for no man
tempest-tossed upon life’s billow
The hull or the dinghy
Serves as a fortress
Though steady on its keel
Knocked his wits and sense
As he vacillates between levity and despair
Caused by his unbridled folly
He rakes the moon from out of the sea
A gust of air blew
It tethered him to flee
All you see is overcast
Knots, tiller, hatch, or helm
Love’s killer patch, overwhelm
Derelict in a sense
A castaway float astray
Break the resolve
Of a man who once vowed
to never sail again
But the songs of the nymphs
Was beckoning him
Is there something alluring 
or is he just lonely?
Can't find comfort in the stillness
With every beating on the mast
Fate on the tide
Because not once, not twice
But several times 
he almost drowned
He was lost at sea
His curse muffled 
No stir in the air
He was peeled
And like the tales of sailormen,
She suddenly appeared
Like white foam 
She ribboned the blue sky
The clouds drifts idly
As if they haven’t heard
Not a stirring breeze
But her ravenous rage
Devoured him
With rapacious eagerness
Lapping at his ballast
A violent wind is no match
To a careless sail man
in the middle of a stormy sea 
He tasted the saltiness 
And remembered the breath of his past
As he found himself washed ashore
He was saved at last
But he was looking for more
Despite the warning from the weather lore
And like the wind,
She whips a howling dance
As sea and sky make love
She could not calm her frenetic ire
It stirred something in him
It hit him like a squall
Once again he takes the plunge
Stupid as he is
To find himself once again
Sailing in the storm
Amidst the  tempestuous sea
Evening gray and morning red
He could only wish he was dead.
All hands on deck
And as he chants 
Red sky in the morning
Serves as warning
Red sky at night sailors delight
Her crimson lips parted
As she said,
"Evening red and morning gray, 
help the traveler on his way. 
Evening gray and morning red 
bring down my wrath upon his head".

Copyright © | Year Posted 2024




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Date: 4/12/2024 4:22:00 PM
Hi Rowe, great poem. I'm having flashbacks when I was in the Navy. We caught a storm in the Med and was at the mercy of the sea. Pitching to and fro, we came very close to capsizing ourselves. Thankfully the ballast held, but the experience is etched in my memory as one of the greatest rides I ever took. I can still taste the salt in the air. Thanks for the reminder.
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Date: 2/13/2024 4:16:00 PM
He needs to avoid the flaming femme fatales and find himself a nice country gal, IMHO. Nice use of metaphors Rowe. Some of your grammar was a bit off but hey, it's poetry
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Rowe Weiss
Date: 2/21/2024 6:14:00 AM
Thank you Tom for noticing that. I knew it was off before I posted, I was debating if I wanted the voice to be in the first or third person. And I got lazy about editing it. Your humble opinion is much appreciated.
Date: 2/1/2024 6:44:00 PM
Dear Rowe, Another wonderful rich write of yours. Enjoyed it..
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Rowe Weiss
Date: 2/21/2024 6:15:00 AM
Thank you Nancy, coming from you, that is such huge compliment.
Date: 1/31/2024 9:12:00 AM
Blimey - this is quite a storm! Some real fab lines in this: "..She suddenly appeared Like white foam She ribboned the blue sky The clouds drifts idly As if they haven’t heard" I don't quite know whether to applaud or swim for my life. Great poem.
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Sam Scott
Date: 2/22/2024 8:14:00 AM
Indeed! How wonderful :) I think I will have to fav this and re-visit it from time to time. The last few lines make it very personal (and more threatening) just as a storm should be for the unwary traveler :))
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Rowe Weiss
Date: 2/21/2024 6:15:00 AM
Thank you Sam, if I remember, I wrote it since you asked for a Storm-themed poem.
Date: 1/31/2024 1:54:00 AM
Some seamen never learn; the temptation to sail the uncharted sea is too great. But the tempestuous storm always catches up with them. I love the metaphors throughout this piece, Rowe.
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Rowe Weiss
Date: 2/21/2024 6:16:00 AM
Thank you John, for taking the time to read my poem.

Book: Reflection on the Important Things