Tormented Sea

Kit Carson · 10:49 PM

In the days that have passed by
I've ample time to wonder why
It never came to me at the time
To ask the reason or the ryhme
Parting ways with land, a sorrow
To be felt strongly on the morrow
Into calm waters did we sail
With all the diesels, never fail
A raging fury was a brewing
With yet a thousand eyes a viewing
A storm that threatens sailors only
Un-named and unforgiving, lonely
Typhoon! It comes so quickly with
Rolling waves, three feet high 'neath
Darkening skies and old sailors grin
As the new ones eat hearty and begin
To change colors as white and black
And tan turns to green as bellies empty
Sea legs crumble amid the rumble and
Roar of God's wraith fully focused on
The 400 and no one else, the diesels humming
Foaming waves, six feet high,
hard to...
stand in one place...
for long, waves start to
Crash! Over the forecastle
Typhoon! The diesels groaning as
The tempest rages!
Waves pounding hardened steel
Nine feet high and rising
As you rise and fall!
And rise and fall again, and again, and again, and...
Turn!
Your back to the wind
Before it's too late
Twenty foot wave!
Grab the lifeline. Turn! slide and roll
Towards the sea!
Fall...
Grab...
Slide...
Reach out and touch the sea
You are almost there
Three-ton safe goes falling
This is how it ends my friends
Falling, sliding beneath the waves...
TURN! 400 SCREAM! TURN!The diesels roar
90 degrees, a ship can't float that way
We're...not...coming...back...up...this...time...
RISE!...RISE!...400 people, no one breathing
Rise, and she begins to answer to our will
RISE! She does as we breathe easy
And our Captain says, a wise sailor be
"Let us leave behind this tormented sea"

Jer4clarity · 06-09-2007, 02:01 PM

Mike,

this was an incredible journey I was there man rising and falling and my favorite:

The Following Text Is Quoted:

Reach out and touch the sea
You are almost there

I was right there with you. And I'm not even a ship or boat kinda guy.

Great story!

Jerry

Kit Carson · 06-09-2007, 02:14 PM

thanks, I wrote it at work the other day. It's been bouncing around in my head for about 27 years, about time I wrote it.

Jer4clarity · 06-09-2007, 02:35 PM

bouncing....i get it!

PaintedDiary · 06-10-2007, 01:01 PM

Dear Kit,

OMG!! This was fantabulous! I love poems about the Sea and the Ocean, and are amongst my favorites! Yes, you place the reader there! I was praying, swaying, screaminf, and hanging on with you. Reminded me of the mysterious Rouge Waves that I teach my students about in Oceanography. Awesome! Thank you for sharing! Beautifully crafted and executed Kit! An excellent rating from me.

Kimberly

Kit Carson · 06-14-2007, 06:59 PM

Kimberly, thank you very much

I glad you liked the ride, I didn't much care for it! 28 years can round the edges off most memories, but this one is very strong. It was a joy to write and very easy too because of the power of that day is still etched upon my brain.

Sally Roberts · 06-17-2007, 03:27 PM

Kit:

Without knowing it I had held my breath all the way through the poem. When at last I let it out, I could hear the screams of the sailors begging for mercy as the typhon ravaged the deck of the ship.
Not like a rogue wave that indeed roll small boats and big ships, but rightous waves that continue and continue to force itself to destroy the ships in its wake.

To survive, such a horrific ordeal takes guts, brawn, and bravery.

Thanks for sharing with us, what the ocean tried to destroy, and you bravely incountered and survived from.

Blessings

Kit Carson · 06-19-2007, 07:40 PM

Sally,
That's a long poem to hold your breath through! It was very intense and is imprinted on my brain, is why it was so easy to write and fun from 27 years of distance! My family still don't fully understand my tears when I watch "Titantic" or "Perfect Storm". It is very real to me. I have another one i shall post, "The Wreck Of The U.S.S. Leahy". Thank you for your comments.