The Eye of the Sea - Part 2

Continued from The Eye of the Sea part 1 The first mate, dour and sparse of words Claimed few things were his pleasure And too much beer had brought him here, That and the rumoured treasure. The cook was thin, just bones and skin, And constantly in a bad mood, Though he feigned remorse and all because He feared to eat his own food. Why’d he ever leave home with the urge to roam? The cabin boy’d contemplate, Each morning he’d swear that the Gods were unfair, They were gambling on his fate. Crippled from birth, yet filled with mirth, The Bosun was a giant in spirit, Admired on the whole for the size of his soul And loathed for his rapier wit. The doctor arrived in the nick of time And reluctantly clambered aboard, Not good at sea, more vet than M.D. The money was what he adored. At hint of bad weather, as precautionary measure, He’d dose everyone with horse tonic, It aided some in the work to be done, But most were better off than on it. And Helen the Whore was smuggled aboard, To keep the men happy she came, The tales told were true of positions she knew, And all with a different name. With holes in her socks and riddled with pox, She catered to everymans need, ‘Twas all she could do, and praised by the crew, Allowed everyone to succeed. The rest of the men were salty and grim, From a life on the oceans wide, They cared little more for what fate held in store, Than they did for the size of the prize. Our vessel outfitted; the crew all listed, There was little more to do, So the Captain paid for a cask full of ale And we drank the whole night through. The crowd all cheered from the end of the pier As the crew cast off from the quay, And sailed away at the start of the day, In a boat called, ‘The Eye of the Sea.’ The ship set sail at the height of the gale, As the night was shriven by the sun. The boat moved with ease on the thunderous seas, Our Odyssey… had begun. The seas were rough, the sailing tough Though each man played his part, We covered much ground, (metaphors allowed,) The lure of gold adding heart. Then the crew fell ill, from the doctor’s pill, Which brought them all to their knees, So he dosed them with Chillies and Water of Lilies In the wrath of the South China seas But recovery was slow in the turbulent flow, Unrelieved by rife Mal de Mer Our strength was failing, the seas unavailing We struggled with desperate despair Continued on The Eye of the Sea part 3