Message in a bottle
This ink penetrates this parchment
A sailor's tattoo.
Letters, like all the little boats
Floating in this harbour,
Bob across the waves,
Nestle up against each other
Forming words in the diesel marbled water.
In the morning, the sun rises in
A yellowing sky
Some boats sail out to sea and
All the letters follow in their wake
Spelling out "take me safely home"
And "forget me not"
In the foaming surf.
And my letters in this bottle.
What words should they form?
"Father forgive me for
I know not what I do"
Shells explode along the beach.
"Father forgive me even though
I do know what I do"
Too late to say "save me"
My letters crawl across the page
On their bellies.
"Forgive. Forgive. Forgive."
Harry O'Neill
Sat 23rd Sep 2017 16:51
Hazel,
I like the metaphorical possibilities of the `harbour` figuration in this. And also the reality of `letters` needing to `nestle up against each other` before they can make enough sense to embark on an understandable voyage.
I think I like most that it is a `natural` metaphor which - unlike so much of the strained `metaphor-icity` which is so fashionable these days - is so much more `traditional`.
For instance: the wideness of the sea and the`cogitative` closeness of the harbour are more universally (and also poetically) accessible to the human heart.