Analysis of A Sailors Christmas Poem
Michael Rogers 1974 (NJ)
Twas the night before Christmas, the ship was out steaming,
A few Sailors stood watch while others were dreaming.
They lived in a crowd with racks tight and small,
In a 80-man berthing, cramped one and all.
I had come down the stack with lots of presents to give,
And to see inside just who might perhaps live.
I looked all about, a strange sight did I see,
No tinsel, no presents, not even a tree.
No stockings were hung, shined boots close at hand,
On the bulkhead hung pictures of a far distant land.
They had medals and badges and awards of all kind,
And a sober thought came into my mind.
For this place was different, so dark and so dreary,
I had found the house of a Sailor, once I saw clearly.
A Sailor lay sleeping, silent and alone,
Curled up in a rack and dreaming of home.
The face was so gentle, the room squared away,
This was the United States Sailor today.
This was the hero I saw on TV,
Defending our country so we could be free.
I realized the families that I would visit this night,
Owed their lives to these Sailors lay willing to fight.
Soon round the world, the children would play,
And grownups would celebrate on this Christmas Day.
They all enjoyed freedom each day of the year,
Because of the Sailor, like the one lying right here.
I couldn't help wonder how many lay alone,
On a cold Christmas Eve on a sea, far from home.
The very thought brought a tear to my eye,
I dropped to my knees and started to cry.
The Sailor awakened looked up and smiled, and I heard a calm voice,
"Santa, don't cry, this life is my choice."
"Defending the seas all days of the year,
So others may live and be free with no fear."
I thought for a moment, what a difficult road,
To live a life guided by honor and code.
After all it's Christmas Eve and the ship's underway!
But freedom isn't free and it's sailors who pay.
The Sailor say's to our country "be free and sleep tight,
No harm will come, not on my watch, not on this night.
The Sailor rolled over and drifted to sleep,
I couldn't control it, for this Sailor, I continued to weep.
I kept watch for hours, so silent, so still,
I watched as the Sailor shivered from the night's cold chill.
I gave him a blanket so he wouldn't get ill.
I didn't want to leave on that cold dark night,
This guardian of honor so willing to fight.
The Sailor rolled over and with a voice strong and sure,
In a Commanding voice, "Carry on Santa, It's Christmas, and All is Secure!"
Scheme | A A B B X X C C D D E E C C F G H H C C I I H H J X F G K K L L J J M M H H I I N N O O O I I P P |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1010110011110 011011110010 1100111101 00111101 1111011111011 01101111011 11101011111 11011011001 1100111111 101110101101 1110010001111 0010110111 1111100110110 11101101011110 01011010001 1100101011 01111001101 11001011001 1101011111 010101011111 11001001111011 111111011011 110101011 0111011101 11011011101 0110101011011 110110110101 101101101111 0101101111 1111101011 0100101101011011 101111111 0100111101 11011011111 111010101001 11011011001 101110100101 110101011011 01011101011011 111111111111 01011001011 1100111110101011 11111011011 1110101010111 111010111011 11011111111 110011011011 0101100101101 0001011011011001101 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 2,492 |
Words | 562 |
Sentences | 27 |
Stanzas | 49 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1 |
Lines Amount | 49 |
Letters per line (avg) | 38 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 38 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 9 |
Font size:
Written on December 25, 2022
Submitted by michaelr.38949 on December 26, 2022
Modified on April 09, 2023
- 2:51 min read
- 51 Views
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"A Sailors Christmas Poem" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 13 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/147081/a-sailors-christmas-poem>.
Discuss this Michael Rogers poem analysis with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In