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Poetry is just the evidence of life. If your life is burning well, poetry is just the ash. Leonard Cohen

Saturday, October 5, 2013

The Captain



We called him Captain Morgan
for he sailed a sea of rum
We never saw him sober, but
we never saw him glum
His real name had been lost
to the high waves of history
The past he didn’t cotton to;
He was a mystery
His hair was all atangle,
had a hook for his left arm
His teeth were gone; his eyes were red
He had a certain charm
We saw him every day
and then we saw him every night
He wasn’t really rude, although
he wasn’t quite polite
The women were “fine wenches”
and the men were scallywags
He laughed and said he’d steal the gold
out of their hands and bags
He sang an old sea shanty
that was crude as it was loud
He never asked for money
for the man was far too proud
One day he said the time had come
His ship would soon set sail
We shook his hand and wished him well
through sun and rain and gale
Next morn we looked around
No Captain Morgan was in sight
And later on we learned
that he had died that very night
So let us lift our bottles
to the Captain’s final quest
He may have been a drunk old man
but, man, he was the best.

9 comments:

L. Edgar Otto said...

But in his own eyes he was a swashbuckler... as we who toast to him after his demise that we speak no ill of his ghost departed.

What is one souls good ship EXPEDIS is another soul's DEEPSIX

smooth rhymes and I felt lost in the story... the old seaman seemed real.

Scarlet said...

What a character of man ~ Drinking all the way until his last day ~ That "ship" is a good one LM ~

Brian Miller said...

he lived life the only way he knew how you know...not an easy one for sure when you have to live in a bottle...

Kerry O'Connor said...

"We never knew he was a drunk until we saw him sober!"

This was a lot of fun to read, LM.

Marian said...

yes, a really enjoyable cautionary tale!

BB said...

Brilliant! And I've toasted the Captain a few times in my day! lol

aspiritofsimplicity said...

that is my favorite one!! I think he lived in my hometown...perhaps he lives there still.

Herotomost said...

I like the fact that even someone in a state such as this can still charm a crowd and make the spot he left one that was missed. Great writing Girly !....Loved it and thanks for coming out!

moondustwriter said...

you tell a staggering story for a wee mouse :)
a great rhyme scheme for the captain