When the Wind is Strong and the Waves are High

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Stephen Whiteside
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When the Wind is Strong and the Waves are High

Post by Stephen Whiteside » Sun Mar 25, 2018 2:13 pm

When I was a child in the 60s, summer holidays were spent at Somers on Victoria's Westernport Bay. Somers was a sailing town, and the yacht club was the social centre. (That's me on the left.)


When the Wind is Strong and the Waves are High

When the wind is strong and the waves are high,
The sailors opt for staying dry.
They sit in the clubhouse cosily,
Sipping steaming mugs of tea
And chatting cheerily.

When the waves are steep and the wind blows hard,
The boats stay trailered in the yard.
The wind through the spars makes an awful shriek,
While the flapping shrouds make it hard to speak -
More luck, perhaps, next week.

When the wind is stiff and the waves are tall,
It’s hard to do very much at all,
For this whole town revolves round sail,
And when the weather gods offer a gale
All social systems fail.

But a time will come, the sailors know,
When the wind will drop to a moderate blow;
When the waves will flatten, both trough and crest,
And each will fasten their safety vest,
And vie to be the best.

© Stephen Whiteside 25.03.2018
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Stephen Whiteside, Australian Poet and Writer
http://www.stephenwhiteside.com.au

Neville Briggs
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Re: When the Wind is Strong and the Waves are High

Post by Neville Briggs » Sun Mar 25, 2018 5:52 pm

It's good to see a bit of verse about the sea, which is the Oz favourite pastime.
Neville
" Prose is description, poetry is presence " Les Murray.

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Stephen Whiteside
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Re: When the Wind is Strong and the Waves are High

Post by Stephen Whiteside » Mon Mar 26, 2018 6:58 am

Thanks, Neville.
Stephen Whiteside, Australian Poet and Writer
http://www.stephenwhiteside.com.au

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Shelley Hansen
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Re: When the Wind is Strong and the Waves are High

Post by Shelley Hansen » Mon Mar 26, 2018 2:55 pm

Love it, Stephen! Can feel the wind in my face!

I also like the aabbb rhyme scheme - not one I've used, but mmmm ... maybe I will ...

Great photo!

Cheers
Shelley
Shelley Hansen
Lady of Lines
http://www.shelleyhansen.com

"Look fer yer profits in the 'earts o' friends,
fer 'atin' never paid no dividends."
(CJ Dennis "The Mooch o' Life")

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Stephen Whiteside
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Re: When the Wind is Strong and the Waves are High

Post by Stephen Whiteside » Mon Mar 26, 2018 6:38 pm

Thanks, Shelley.

As Dennis said,

"The triplets come much 'harder than the twins;
But I 'ave 'ad to bear 'em fer me sins."
Stephen Whiteside, Australian Poet and Writer
http://www.stephenwhiteside.com.au

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