The Sea's Temptation



It pours and runs in and out
Without a fear or hesitation
Churning, breaking, falling, clashing
Grey armies the storm’s banners fly

Heaven and leviathan clothed the same
Though called by different names
Ancient foes clash in eternal battle
Bystanders swayed to near death

They begin to be one
So close they could touch
Yearning for the other’s embrace
A meeting to be had
Cheek to cheek, face to face

Not a breath of calm during the fray
Day less night into night less day
It never seems to end
The maw that swallows all

Our path straight through the valleys
Mountains and rivers
Destroyed and rebuilt
Constant change the mark if its rage

Darker and wilder it grows
Over and undertows
The faint heart certain terror awaits
When present one only sees fate

Date and time fall away into nothing
The painter not capable of brushing
The strokes that fall to many to fast
Incredible ruthless undying power

The Greek’s solace in gods not a wonder
For why they would ever attempt a blunder
On top of its faceless abyss
Death finds all with her kiss

Whether in thought or in deed
This creature grips the heart
Some men’s stomachs apart
But all feel its power

Moment by moment, hour after hour
How they struggle to learn her ways
Tempt her calendar, measure her days
Fascinated at her ever unpredictable ways

Prognostication a folly
You’ll realize as each volley
Tears at the craft
The only hope of life tossed

Seeming trash made of paper
Her revenge for our daring caper
We must away
Escape made possible only by sand

The fool she pushes closer, than away
The night seems endless
Dark as any point of no return
Constitution of steel and daring a must

Fog rolls in out of nowhere
To hide her nefarious deeds
The sloshing of mysterious tricksters
Persuading the loose ear to imagination

If through the peril you will go
Winter holds no cold
Like the inky black locks
Pulling toward herself with magnetic force

The shore’s passionate fire waits
Her gait never quite stops
Even as the view of her drops
Out of sight

Never out of mind
The smell of her neck ever drawing and kind
Would she still remember this lad?
Staring into her depths weary and sad

Wishing only for her embrace
Dying to see the light of her eyes
In the far away end of day
As her beauty touches the sky

Natural beauty no other lass knows
No clashing, no insecurity shows
Only the luster of her emotional throws
Crying to my soul for its worth

This must be placed into a man at birth
A need for this lifeless adventure
One’s end not an issue
When caressed by this tempter

My meaning unclear?
To live without fear
The idiot a master
Of this horrible fate

Do not arrive at the wrong conclusion
Early or even very late
The presence of fear makes her alluring
This known yet unknown quantity, assuring

Out of the need for fright
Courage is born anew
She remains ever aloof
Far from this, humanities dank stew

My point is just this
Why fear the uncontrollable end?
Why not make her a lover?
Or even a close bosom friend?

Her ways will still amaze you
If not just in style
Your death which is certain
Will come in a short while

Danger’s friend makes this no surprise
Bound to get lost in her eyes
The truth lies there
As do many young men

Who found this luck’s end
Died without mother or father
Friend or loved pet
Deep in the dark reaches
Of her ensorcelled graveyard

The lucky ones walk on steady legs again
Far away from her dark magic
Alluring to the young man’s soul
Leading only to death
This it’s final terrible toll.

An old man still finds in his bones
Tearing eyes at a loss for home
Wishing, wanting, waiting to die at sea
This is where the real men be
I trow not.
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Submitted by ThePhantom25 on June 08, 2015

Modified on May 02, 2023

3:21 min read
57

Quick analysis:

Scheme XABC XXXD AXEFE GGHX XIXX JJKL BBXM MMNN XOOM MPPP QQXX MMGX GXXX RXIA XXXX KSST UUFF EVGC JJJW WMXG YYML ALBB TXXX NHMH XZAZ VVR1 HMXXX 1 X2 D2 XXQQX
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 3,537
Words 671
Stanzas 29
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 5

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