A friend's poem
A poem a friend wrote after my night out at sea.
Lorenzo, November, the sea calls and you haul
your gear to the edge of the shore you adore, and
step onto your board for the thrill of the ocean.
You crave the sensation, elation, the motion
of flying through space with the spray on your face,
(The face that she kissed; was there something you missed?)
as she turns for the town with the sun going down
and you catch the first breeze with the ease of a sailor.
Curling and twisting, leaning and listening
to seagulls and gannets that swoop to admire all
your swirling and skimming. Your big heart is brimming
with pride and emotion. The king of the ocean, Lorenzo.
Lorenzo, the sea knows your name.
The wind is your friend and the sail is your brother
But always remember the sea is your master.
You fly through the waves going faster and faster.
The wind you depend on keeps coming and going;
a friend or a foe, there is no way of knowing.
The friend you depend on, it blows you out further,
away from the rocks and the land and disaster.
The shore disappearing, your big heart despairing,
The wind you depend on is gone!
Now alone on grey water, the dusk is descending,
you drift on the ocean in night never-ending.
Over and over the sea is your lover, Lorenzo,
And only the sea knows your name.
The searchlight above you is swaying and saying
That somewhere the shouters and doubters are praying.
They love you, Lorenzo, they’re searching the wild waves.
Your friends on the cliff-top yell into the darkness.
Again and again the bright beam spears the blackness
They’re searching in vain for Lorenzo;
Just you and the sea know you’re there.
The sea sends in friendship a twinkle of lightning*
A candle to guide you, a beacon, a lifeline.
The sea is your mother; its soft arms enfold you,
Caresses and calms you; it passes you on to
the river that takes you and bears you to land.
Hand over hand you will climb to the cliff-top
Then over the fields to a fisherman’s doorstep.
The sea is your master, your mother, your lover,
your friend…and Lorenzo,
Lorenzo, the sea knows your name.
John McGrath November 2018
*Phosphorescence on the wave-tips