The margins of the mariner differ:

while people of the land wither, 

he makes friends with the waves

peopled by gods, trusting his

compass in cahoots with the North, 

hoping the Old Man of the Sea

stays sufficiently appeased 

to send his Nereids in aid,

should the voyage be in peril.

 

The scorecard of the sailor differs:

all it has to check

is how oft he conversed

as honestly as can be

with Selene, lucent

queen of the firmament, 

and trusted as guides

the gracious stars

in her regiment.