The Ship and the Iceberg

By hilary west

Mon, 01 Apr 2019
  • 1784 reads
8 comments
 

Calm waters on the horizon,

But the passengers wanted to go a different route.

Soon choppy waters became the order of the day,

Winds whipped up and tossed the ship hither and thither.

 

Icebergs were spotted on the bridge.

The captain of the ship was unbending but decisive.

The crew disagreed with the action taken,

And the passengers were full of fear.

 

Would they hit the iceberg?

Darkness shrouded the ship in mist.

But the ship ploughed on and seemed to avoid the iceberg.

The storm was subsiding and the captain seemed to hold his nerve.

 

Would the clouds ever break?

Would the seas become calm again?

All eyes are on the ship,

But passengers and crew disagree on the trip.

 

It was not the cruise of a lifetime they had envisaged.

Another storm was coming.

Another iceberg loomed.

Certificate U
Poem
Flowers for the Dead : POEMS
Unclassified

Comments

Submitted by Rhiannonw on

Storms and sea always somewhat unpredictable. I like the tension of the scene and the waiting.

Crew and passengers need reasonable confidence in their captain don't they? In the first verse, were the passengers insisting the captain go where they wanted against his judgement? Rhiannon

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi Hilary,

this is the kind of nightmare I wouldn't want to find myself in, I can't imagine what it would be like to not be able to step on dry land and be at the mercy of the freezing ocean.

You bring the situation to life with your descriptions of fear the crew and passengers must be in.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by hilary west on

Hi Rhiannon,

Thanks for reading my poem and seeing it just for what it appears. I wasn't sure if it worked as a literal poem as it is meant to be about Brexit. The ship is the UK and the iceberg is a No Deal Brexit. The crew are the MPs and the passengers the people of Britain. You were right of course the people were going against the captain's judgement. I hope this will give another layer of meaning to the poem ! Best Wishes, Hilary   smiley

 

Submitted by Rhiannonw on

I should have guessed that! There is so much fear around of the unknown of how a No deal, or other deals would really work out. Complicated! Rhiannon

 

Submitted by hilary west on

Hi Jenny,

As I said to Rhiannon it is about Brexit, but I am glad you thought it worked as a literal poem too. Thanks for reading, Jenny !

Hilary   wink

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

 

I'm glad you accepted  my comment okay.

Jenny.

 

Submitted by hilary west on

Hi Jenny,

I am certainly grateful for any comment you make, Jenny. But as I have said to Rhiannon the trouble with metaphor is will people get it. What your comment did for me was boost my confidence in the poem as a literal effort !

Best Wishes,

Hilary       laugh

 

Submitted by hilary west on

Hi Rhiannon,

The trouble with writing a poem using metaphor is will people get it. I thought that with the current obsession with Brexit people are thinking of nothing else! Thanks for reading, Rhiannon.