Tellers of tides
Boats in the harbor
Boats in the harbor
Nosed in
Facing homeward
In an ebb tide
Tug of war:
In an ebb tide
Tug of war:
Moored by land,
Pulled by sea;
Straining, tugging
Heart strings and ropes,
A fisherman
And his boat.
When I watch the boats in the harbor or watch the fishermen getting nets and traps ready on land, I think about the dual lives they lead and the love of both that they have. To be a fisherman takes a special love of the sea though, where farmers have the love of the land. My grandfather was a lover of the sea, my husband's grandfather a lover of the land. Perhaps sometime I will write about the differences and similarities there. They both...nevermind. I'm going to write about that another time. It would have been good for Father's Day, but that's how it goes.
This week's Poetry Friday is being hosted by Mary Lee at A Year of Reading. Head on over to read more great poetry today!
I like the way it sounds, Donna. It's clipped brevity seems just right. "Straining, tugging/Heart strings and ropes,/ A fisherman/and his boat." I've often wondered about that pull, the restlessness until back on the waves. Lovely poem.
ReplyDeleteThis is beautiful, Donna.
ReplyDelete"Moored by land, pulled by sea" - the story of my life, mostly metaphorically. Lovely ebb and flow in this poem, Donna.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great poem.
ReplyDeleteIf I lived 200 years ago, I would have run away to be a sailor.
I love the parts that Renee and Linda picked! And maybe this is a Father's Day poem after all -- a poem about holding on and letting go, about the tides of life and the things (people) that anchor us...
ReplyDeletemy parents were one a lover of water and the other land--me somewhere in between--lovely!
ReplyDeleteLovely!
ReplyDeleteGreat opening line, Donna. I love the contrast between the boats "nosed in" in stanza one and "straining, tugging" in stanza two. Enjoy your Father's Day.
ReplyDeleteI loved this, Donna, so spare and so full of meaning.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful - captures the tension perfectly. Many poems this week seem to be about home/travelling/returning home etc.... Happy Father's Day to the dads in your family this weekend.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful poem. I know all about lovers of the land. My brother is one and all we wants to do is farm.
ReplyDeleteNot much experience with fishermen, though. :-)
I love the words you have put together in this poem. The first two lines of each stanza are my favorites.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful poem!
ReplyDelete