Push the boat out
Push the boat out, companeros,
Push the boat out, whatever the sea.
Who says we cannot guide ourselves
through the boiling reefs, black as they are,
the enemy of us all makes sure of it!
Mariners, keep good watch always
for that last passage of blue water
we have heard of and long to reach
(no matter if we cannot, no matter!)
in our eighty-year-old timbers
leaky and patched as they are but sweet,
well seasoned with the scent of woods
long perished, serviceable still
in unarrested pungency
of salt and blistering sunlight. Out,
push it all out into the unknown!
Unknown is best, it beckons best,
like distant ships in mist, or bells
clanging ruthless from stormy buoys.
~Edwin Morgan
(1920- )
Photo taken at the Mina Zayed Port, Abu Dhabi.
Push the boat out, whatever the sea.
Who says we cannot guide ourselves
through the boiling reefs, black as they are,
the enemy of us all makes sure of it!
Mariners, keep good watch always
for that last passage of blue water
we have heard of and long to reach
(no matter if we cannot, no matter!)
in our eighty-year-old timbers
leaky and patched as they are but sweet,
well seasoned with the scent of woods
long perished, serviceable still
in unarrested pungency
of salt and blistering sunlight. Out,
push it all out into the unknown!
Unknown is best, it beckons best,
like distant ships in mist, or bells
clanging ruthless from stormy buoys.
~Edwin Morgan
(1920- )
Photo taken at the Mina Zayed Port, Abu Dhabi.
7 comments:
What an old beauty! In my earlier days my parents had quite a few boats, punts, canoes and ballyhoos. I had loads of fun with the ballyhoos pushing it around, mostly to get the sweetest mangoes that hang over the canal..
What a great way to grow up. Never heard of a 'ballyhoo' in this context before. Can you guess what the poem is really about?
I love this shot !
For every photo you have, there's corresponding poem which give more meaning to the image. I enjoyed my stay here, keep up the good work!
Great shot of the weathered boat.
Sydney - City and Suburbs
Gorgeous shot!
It seems to be about confronting old age.
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