Sat in the boat moonlight flickers
Hauling at the oars
My young years the reason I’m given
The work of the donkey
Seventeen is what I told them
No soul here knows me
shall keep it so till the sea leaves my blood.
We row till my arms are screaming in pain
Begging for rest and warmth
I need to do this for proof of a life
A secret to know when I’m old that I did
Something different even for a while
Lucky that I’m tall for thirteen
As we load our shipwreck spoils to sell
No bodies were there no man harmed
I shiver in relief and grin
Lad, you can go when we hit the downs
And don’t turn back will you?
Our secret is not yours to have yet you see?
I nod and give a gruff reply
Race away across the beach and up
Into the sands hood pulled up breath ragged
starting to slow now I know I did it
They didn’t even guess they had a bad luck charm
They took a girl to sea.
Ailsa
©️AilsaCawleyPoetry 2019
#Y’sWords. #poetryprompt #DavidBeaverArt
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