Neptunian Nomads

"Theirs not to make reply,

Theirs not to reason why,

Theirs but to do and die:

Into the valley of Death

Rode the six hundred.” ~ Lord Tennyson (in The Charge of the Light Brigade)

Part 1

The last rays of the lilac sky flushed

In tufts of brunet mare’s tail,

“Hark! My seamen hark!”

It’s time my men to take your oars,

Propel those fluttering sails!”

Gothic depths churned by Plutonian powers,

In multitudes, the troughs and crests escalate

And roused in a labyrinth of thousand waterways,

Do we cower in clammy cabins of the wooden barrel?

“Never captain! Never! ” The sons of Neptune whoop

“We will humble the ocean’s monstrous fray”

Our quaint homes vacant on pristine shores,

Our quest to devour the exotic unknowns

 Masqueraded in the globe’s galactic alleys,

Monsters of Loch Ness, or the deep sea chimeras,

We know no fear, nor cajoled are we

By the siren’s carnal hymns,

From Blackpool to Bali is our maiden’s sojourn,

The hem of her frothy trail chaperoned

By the bluejacket hearts cast in bronze.

Part 2

In silken veils of the after dark

Gleams the withered aurora of faraway minarets,

Mosaic tunes ringing in acrid air

Of mermaid wails and carillon dongs,

The drifting stares at the lands end

And tendrils of surf yank in crestfallen curls

Surmises of lost possessions.

Feathery murmurs of cocooned voice

In spiral motions of cognizance

Rumbles of the lofty days of folklore tales

Braided in granny’s Cornwall cottage

Her sumptuous meals of oyster soups

Tickles my wasted hunger,

Thrusting myself at the outskirts

Of my sailing entourage.

Alas! the vision’s grace is molded

On eroded shoals of England’s vanishing coastline,

I see my clouded clairvoyance

Escape in the Atlantic mirth.

Author's Note

Some days back I was watching Sandra Bullock’s The Blind Side and I remembered Tennyson’s poem from my sixth standard. For greater conquests in life, sacrifices are to be made and a life lived on the edges of travel, adventures and remote voyage is worth the risks that come with it. Few days back I was also having a discussion with my friend Tate Morgan about his traveling experiences :) This is the driving force of the poem. A captain’s word of thrill pushing his men to overcome all the adversities is what the fist part deals with. The Part 2 delves into the deeper crevices of his heart. It talks how wistfully he contemplates about his family. I intended to give it an Arabian Nights feel, but I don’t know how far I have managed to do that. This will be one of the last pieces I will write for a while. Next two months going to keep me busy in meeting my college projects deadlines :(

Reviews

[Shadows of Memories]

whenevr I read your poems it makes me feel like those I have read in books by great poets...u have such a stupendous flair in u wid ur bouquet of good & perfct words selection. It just made me to read ur poem more than once as it made me to sail thru the beauty of its vastness. I by hobby am a traveller and love to travel and do photography a lot...and dis poem is one of the best ones. I am amazed to find so many good works dis week here that it made me feel so upright u c.thanks for sharing.hugs

[Mary C]

passionate and free-flowing write that impacts..

[patricia]

Gotta save this one for my library, my favourite line was undoubtedly Braided in granny's Cornwall cottage. This poem is very important to me, it was a favourite of a very cultured old lady I used to visit, I loved to hear her read it aloud. Blackpool also has many connections for me as it is my second home. As for the sophistication in this peice, I will need more time for meditating on that, I can see there is a touch of genius in your work, and am sad to hear we wont be hearing from you for a while. God bless your work in your college projects. I am sure you will sail the ocean easily. Bye for now. Trish.

[EMF]

The imagry, laguage, style..all faultless. A sheer wonder. I am left in awe.

[Leslie Philibert]

I enjoyed this for a number of reasons.I liked the introduction with the famous verse of Tennyson (probably your favourite poet)then the very rich metaphorical language, which always fits well into the theme,there is no trace of any kind of wrong imagery,it is a poem with a strong organic unity, dense and worth a repeated reading.Well done.

[Coyote Poetry]

The poem was amazing. Type of poetry need to be read with skill and time. I like many strong statements in the poem.
" Masqueraded in the globe’s galactic alleys,
Monsters of Loch Ness, or the deep sea chimeras,
We know no fear, nor cajoled are we
By the siren’s carnal hymns,"
Thank you for the outstanding poem.
Coyote

[Irfan Bashir Shah]

"Gothic depths churned by Plutonian powers,"..... Great words there...
You have a vast expanse of vocabulary and flawless imagery and that's what made me stick to it.....
Although i had to read it twice but that's no big problem... Great poems possess deep meanings which take time to dig into.... Nicely done, aye!

[Prophecy]

You are one of the better poets I've seen to come out of this place...

[Droll Prole]

Fantastic!!