tale to tale

We are not all in the same boat,
But are all caught in the same storm,
On the same vast sea.

I hold on to my single mast,
My boat is worn with flaking paint,
And loose planks.

I dream one day to do it up,
To varnish the floors and
Give a shine to its dull hull.

I am away from the harbour,
Along with one like me,
I can see their shape on the horizon.

There’s a troubled captain,
Pulling on the same ropes
But with a gleaming coat.

And another, in this grey ocean,
An aged vessel,
Homing two lovers,
Who have known the sea all their lives.