Group Poem XX

Miscellaneous Other Topics.
Audiendus
Wordmaster
Posts: 909
Joined: Sun Feb 14, 2010 6:08 pm
Location: London, UK

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby Audiendus » Wed Aug 06, 2014 6:21 pm

The Shipwreck

When the crew felt a surge in the strength of the wind
They all knew right away they were sunk
And the captain said "Aye, 'tis an ominous sign"
As a rope hit the deck with a clunk.

But a sailor will never give in to the sea
And the helmsman with boldness opined:
"We will probably die in this damnable squall
But we'll fight it with hope in our mind".

So we battened the hatches and took down the sails
As a wave tore the flags from a mast
And the swells were as high as the ocean is deep
When the wheelhouse was smashed by the blast.

We were all on our knees—some for fear, some for prayer—
While the captain consulted his maps
With a visage forlorn, he looked out at the storm
Then he mused: "There's an island, perhaps..."

"If an island there be, let's weigh anchor straightway
For we're listing at 30 degrees"
Then by effort or grace, the ship's listing reversed
And they launched all the lifeboats with ease.

Since we labored in darkness, each boat burned a lamp
And we watched the ship break and go down
Then the glow from the lifeboats became our lone guides—
Would we land, or be pitched out and drown?

For a time we all managed to stay boat to boat
But the phalanx of lights soon dispersed
To the point it was hard to account for the souls
And the men with me shrugged, wept, or cursed.

In the end, there was one light—on boat on the beach
Seven men's only prospect of aid

saparris
Wordmaster
Posts: 794
Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: South Carolina USA

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby saparris » Wed Aug 06, 2014 7:54 pm

The Shipwreck

When the crew felt a surge in the strength of the wind
They all knew right away they were sunk
And the captain said "Aye, 'tis an ominous sign"
As a rope hit the deck with a clunk.

But a sailor will never give in to the sea
And the helmsman with boldness opined:
"We will probably die in this damnable squall
But we'll fight it with hope in our mind".

So we battened the hatches and took down the sails
As a wave tore the flags from a mast
And the swells were as high as the ocean is deep
When the wheelhouse was smashed by the blast.

We were all on our knees—some for fear, some for prayer—
While the captain consulted his maps
With a visage forlorn, he looked out at the storm
Then he mused: "There's an island, perhaps..."

"If an island there be, let's weigh anchor straightway
For we're listing at 30 degrees"
Then by effort or grace, the ship's listing reversed
And they launched all the lifeboats with ease.

Since we labored in darkness, each boat burned a lamp
And we watched the ship break and go down
Then the glow from the lifeboats became our lone guides—
Would we land, or be pitched out and drown?

For a time we all managed to stay boat to boat
But the phalanx of lights soon dispersed
To the point it was hard to account for the souls
And the men with me shrugged, wept, or cursed.

In the end, there was one light—one boat on the beach
Seven men's only prospect of aid
The remainder are lost in the tomb of the deep
Ars longa, vita brevis

Audiendus
Wordmaster
Posts: 909
Joined: Sun Feb 14, 2010 6:08 pm
Location: London, UK

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby Audiendus » Thu Aug 07, 2014 10:30 am

The Shipwreck

When the crew felt a surge in the strength of the wind
They all knew right away they were sunk
And the captain said "Aye, 'tis an ominous sign"
As a rope hit the deck with a clunk.

But a sailor will never give in to the sea
And the helmsman with boldness opined:
"We will probably die in this damnable squall
But we'll fight it with hope in our mind".

So we battened the hatches and took down the sails
As a wave tore the flags from a mast
And the swells were as high as the ocean is deep
When the wheelhouse was smashed by the blast.

We were all on our knees—some for fear, some for prayer—
While the captain consulted his maps
With a visage forlorn, he looked out at the storm
Then he mused: "There's an island, perhaps..."

"If an island there be, let's weigh anchor straightway
For we're listing at 30 degrees"
Then by effort or grace, the ship's listing reversed
And they launched all the lifeboats with ease.

Since we labored in darkness, each boat burned a lamp
And we watched the ship break and go down
Then the glow from the lifeboats became our lone guides—
Would we land, or be pitched out and drown?

For a time we all managed to stay boat to boat
But the phalanx of lights soon dispersed
To the point it was hard to account for the souls
And the men with me shrugged, wept, or cursed.

In the end, there was one light—one boat on the beach
Seven men who escaped from the foam
The remainder are lost in the tomb of the deep
The survivors would all return home.

THE END

NB: I decided to change the second line of the last stanza.

The final line is deliberately ambiguous: it can mean either "They all later returned home" or "They all want to return home".

LukeJavan8
Great Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 4423
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2009 6:16 pm
Location: Land of the Flat Water

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby LukeJavan8 » Thu Aug 07, 2014 12:13 pm

Bravo you guys. To me this is your best one yet. :)
-----please, draw me a sheep-----

Perry Lassiter
Great Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 3333
Joined: Wed Jan 03, 2007 12:41 pm
Location: RUSTON, LA
Contact:

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby Perry Lassiter » Thu Aug 07, 2014 1:35 pm

Aye, mateys, tis that indeed!
pl

saparris
Wordmaster
Posts: 794
Joined: Fri Jan 22, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: South Carolina USA

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby saparris » Thu Aug 07, 2014 2:10 pm

Argh!
Ars longa, vita brevis

gwray
Lexiterian
Posts: 124
Joined: Tue Jul 05, 2011 10:36 am

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby gwray » Fri Feb 20, 2015 9:44 am

The Shipwreck

When the crew felt a surge in the strength of the wind
They all knew right away they were sunk
And the captain said "Aye, 'tis an ominous sign"
As a rope hit the deck with a clunk.

But a sailor will never give in to the sea
And the helmsman with boldness opined:
"We will probably die in this damnable squall
But we'll fight it with hope in our mind".

So we battened the hatches and took down the sails
As a wave tore the flags from a mast
And the swells were as high as the ocean is deep
When the wheelhouse was smashed by the blast.

We were all on our knees—some for fear, some for prayer—
While the captain consulted his maps
With a visage forlorn, he looked out at the storm
And his men on the verge of collapse
A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver Proverbs 25:11

Audiendus
Wordmaster
Posts: 909
Joined: Sun Feb 14, 2010 6:08 pm
Location: London, UK

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby Audiendus » Mon May 04, 2015 8:27 pm

With regard to gwray's post above, please note that this poem (of 32 lines) was actually completed last August.

LukeJavan8
Great Grand Panjandrum
Posts: 4423
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2009 6:16 pm
Location: Land of the Flat Water

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby LukeJavan8 » Mon May 04, 2015 8:53 pm

Thusly so, spake he.
-----please, draw me a sheep-----

gwray
Lexiterian
Posts: 124
Joined: Tue Jul 05, 2011 10:36 am

Re: Group Poem XX

Postby gwray » Tue May 05, 2015 5:49 pm

Sorry! At the time I contributed, I saw the first page but not the little icons for pages 2 & 3.
A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver Proverbs 25:11


Return to “Res Diversae”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Bing [Bot] and 11 guests