top of page
POEMS IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER
“But here is an artist. He desires to paint you the dreamiest, shadiest,
quietest, most enchanting bit of romantic landscape …”
Chapter 1 Looming
Whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul,
Whenever nothing pleases me,
When what sufficed only yesterday
chafes today,
I am drawn – yea, seduced –
by the nearest body of water,
by my own ungraspable image
that glimmers back at me
beyond which lie
worlds and adventures
I have only dreamed of
to sweep away the
daily drudgery of practicality.
Oh, to be a simple sailor,
afloat and adrift,
and get paid for it, too.
Chapter 2 – The Carpet Bag
Unencumbered,
I head for
a fine, boisterous something
only found in Nantucket,
A room at the inn costs
a pretty penny, but there are
no pennies to be had,
no refuge but one’s own self,
no windows but one’s own eyes.
So when the timing is off and
life makes us wait …
we scrap the ice
from our frosted feet
and we
keep
on
going.
Chapter 3 – The Spouter Inn
Pitch-black and frigid,
the inhospitable night
pushes me toward
the only affordable light in sight -
an inn as cold as the curb.
Once inside, frozen hands
clutch scalding tea
and then -
Good Heavens!
dumplings for supper!
A knobby bench in a
blowy corner leaves
no option but bedding down
with a complete stranger – a
clean, comely looking cannibal.
Not nearly so bad as
a drunken Christian.
Chapter 4 – The Counterpane
Colored glass
shimmers
and casts rainbows
on a form needing
no ornamentation:
Queequeg.
Wrap your lips around it
and say it again:
Queequeg.
Not a bird call but a name:
Queequeg.
Dark, purplish face,
a torrent of tattoos,
tomahawk at the ready -
I tremble!
And yet, dare I say . . .
Queequeg.
Balm to my lonely soul.
Chapter 5 – Breakfast
Grub Ho!
Land Ho!
They’ve braved the seas
and faced leviathans
but have no need to
spin tales or brag
as they break their bread.
Silence suffices.
Chapter 6 – The Street
Dandies,
Cannibals,
Fresh-faced belles,
Fellows who have felled forests –
All dazzle on the streets of Bedford.
Sights and sounds to pack away
and savor during
long days and nights
at sea.
Ch. 7 – The Chapel
I take refuge inside,
where moody fishermen
pay their respects
before they sail,
and am protected
from the wind and sleet
but not from thoughts
of what lies ahead.
Words etched in marble
line the walls
to pay homage
to dear departed sailors:
John Talbot ~ Lost overboard
near the Isle of Desolation
Eyes ahead, straight ahead
at the preacher.
Captain Ezekial Hardy ~ Killed by
a Sperm Whale on
the coast of Japan
Don’t look at the walls!
The Ship Eliza ~
Towed out of sight by a whale
I will go to sea
I will go to sea.
Chapter 8 – The Pulpit
A man with a purpose
does not grow old,
only more robust, as
a light from within
shines through
shines out
ignites himself
and others.
Hand over hand,
he ascends the height
of the grand pulpit
and once there
Beams.
Chapter 9 – The Sermon
Certainty
is thy savior.
In a perilous
and inconstant world,
with death to our left
and our right,
we look to Thee
who never wavers
whose word is law
and whose punishment
is swift.
I am adrift when
in doubt
but afloat in thy
Certainty.
Chapter 10 –A Bosom Friend
Love knows no rules,
follows no pre-prescribed path.
To look at a man and
see him – truly see him –
past skin and bone,
past culture’s artifice
you find that the soul
cannot be hidden
from one who sees
with the heart.
Chapter 11 – Nightgown
I nudge my nose above
my cozy cocoon into
the frigid air,
then smile and duck back
under the warm covers
I share with my friend.
Close comfort
and camaraderie
seem ever more dear
following
the utter lack of them.
Chapter 12 – Biographical
What tells
the measure of a man?
His roots,
dreams,
disappointments,
his religion
or lack of?
Queequeg,
not from Cape Cod
but the South Seas,
is pure of heart and
cannot be sullied.
And although surrounded
by greed and dishonesty
he floats above them,
remaining untouched
in his innocence.
Chapter 13 – Wheelbarrow
Hail Queequeg!
From
scoundrel to hero,
from outsider to
trusted comrade –
all in fifteen minutes flat!
Hail the blasted weather,
come in the nick of time.
Chapter 14 – Nantucket
These naked Nantucketers,
these sea hermits,
view land as a
mere stopping point, only fit
to touch base with the missus
and breed more sailors.
The sea is his! He owns it.
Bed me down on the waves!
Chapter 15 – Chowder
Just landed and a nip’s in the air
Ye can keep yer gold and silver
give me chowder!
Comon’ lads, pull up a chair.
Ye can choose from clam or codfish
Give me chowder!
Hot steaming bowls
to chase the cold away,
Rubbing elbows with my mates
Bring it here now, don’t delay!
No, don’t mull it -
Fill yer gullet
Give me chowder!
Give me chowder!!
Give me chowder!!!
(When’s breakfast?)
Chapter 16 – The Ship
A ship in the harbor
a ship not at sea
is no ship at all
strange and solitary.
A ship with no captain
though in sunlight it gleams,
is not yet alive
only mere joints and beams.
But when sails unfurl
and Ahab walks the deck
and the salt spray stings
the back of my neck
Then the Pequod will reign
and come into its own,
With the deep blue its kingdom
and the white waves its throne
Chapter 17 – The Ramadan
A difference in beliefs
need not undo a friendship.
Who am I to disparage
a congregation of ants
worshipping a toad-stool?
No, what lies between a man’s ears
and within his heart is his own business.
Still, house rules do state,
‘No suicides permitted here,’
so pardon my
breaking down the door.
Chapter 18 – His Mark
Queequeg is a member of
the great and everlasting
First Congregation of this
whole worshipping world,
Ishmael insists
to the doubtful Peleg.
And whether skylarking or not,
what does it matter?
Queequeg’s harpoon decimates
its target and makes
the entire conversation moot.
Chapter 19 – The Prophet
What’s done is done.
Papers signed.
Promises made.
Doubts have no place here
and must be swept aside.
Look ahead not back
nor left nor right.
We’ve thrown in our lots
with a captain named Ahab
and there is no turning back.
Chapter 20 – All Astir
Napkins and nutcrackers.
Pickles and quills.
Masts and sails.
Long lists to be
checked off
with everything
in its place.
Everything
but the Captain -
who is
nowhere to be seen.
Chapter 21 – Going Abroad
We pass the pipe back and forth
over a supine stranger
and settle in,
and whenever this ship sails
we will be on it.
As long as I have
my friend at my side,
I am home.
Chapter 22 – Merry Christmas
The
sea may
be too rough
for Bilbad’s old
body to endure, but
tis where his heart and
his soul reside. How to let go,
relinquish control, and trust others to
do what must be done? All he can do is
nervously holler a fond farewell: "Don’t keep
the cheese
too long
down the
hole."
Chapter 23 – The Lee Shore
A whaler has no home but the sea,
for the land seemed scorching to his feet,
merely something to come back to
and then leave again.
’Tis one’s berth on board that
beckons and feels familiar.
And if a man must die,
it best be done at
Home.
Chapter 24 – The Advocate
In praise of whaling!
Yo ho! Yo ho!
I, Ishmael,
who never has
teetered in a boat
lugged by a leviathan
nor hazarded a hand at a harpoon
nevertheless am
whaling’s champion,
brimming over
with enthusiasm
for something
I have no idea
how to do.
Chapter 25 – Postscript
Do I protest and praise
too much?
What compels me to defend
my newfound career
so passionately?
To counteract
my own trepidation?
What lies ahead I do not know,
but let me claim
it the finest endeavor,
the greatest honor,
for any man.
Thus will I justify
my decision to do it
Chapter 26 – Knights and Squires
The wild, watery loneliness
of Starbuck
is not something to pity,
fear or condemn.
Tis a fact
Part of him
Unquestioned
With his matter-of-fact courage,
respect for his prey
and unswerving standards,
Starbuck is the barometer
by which all Pequod seaman
are measured
and to which all aspire.
Chapter 27 – Knights and Squires
The users and the used.
Will it ever be so?
White men at the helm,
dark men below.
Each side accepts,
never questions
and never wonders
how might the world
be altered if the
best and the brightest
and the bravest
were allowed
to rise to the top?
Chapter 28 – Ahab
On deck.
At last.
Seen by all
but still a mystery.
Surrounded by the crew
yet still alone.
Captain of his ship
yet idle,
for all tasks, all duties
have been assigned.
While Ahab
Waits.
Chapter 29– Enter Ahab; To Him, Stubb
Perfumed, overflowing,
redundant days
and twinkling stars
‘gainst a black velvet sky.
Magical, mesmerizing . . .
and missed by our captain.
Too busy seething
to notice.
Chapter 30 – The Pipe
Even the simplest things
bring no pleasure
when the mind is
poisoned
and the heart
distracted.
Chapter 31 – Queen Mab
Tainted by the day’s torments,
dreams continue the punishment.
Ahab haunts us all
and reaches out only in anger.
Best to avoid the man,
Avert one’s eyes,
Speak only when spoken to.
‘Twill be a long,
very long,
three years.
Chapter 32 – Cetology
Whales! Whales! Whales!
I chase ‘em
Dream of ‘em
Study ‘em, too
I am drowning in
Leviathans!
It is my world now
and I mean to be
an expert.
Chapter 33 – The Specksnyder
Credit where credit is due.
A master harpooner
makes or breaks
a whaling voyage.
Still,
he serves at the
whim of the captain
and what this ship of ours requires
must needs be plucked at
from the skies.
Chapter 34 – The Cabin Table
I’d trade my rank for
a mutton chop,
thinks Flask,
mouth watering
for even one bite.
Give me my work
and then my pay,
but first and foremost
let me eat my fill
and let me do it
in the company of
my peers.
Chapter 35 – The Mast Head
I perch high upon the mast
of the Pequod
with the problem of
the universe revolving in me,
and ponder and wonder
and think great thoughts.
But I do not spot a whale.
Leave meditative sailors below
and send the dullards up high
to be your lookout.
Chapter 36 – The Quarter Deck
~ Past Hearing ~
‘To be enraged with a dumb thing,
Captain Ahab,
seems blasphemous.’
~ Past Seeing ~
‘Naught beyond
that white wall.’
~ Past Reason ~
‘I’d strike the sun
if it insulted me.’
Chapter 37 – Sunset
By ever–brimming goblet’s rim,
the warm waves blush like wine.
Ahab, moved by such a scene,
suspects he has not yet
crossed the line completely,
for if he can mourn this lack of joy
and see that loneliness is anguish to him,
then surely there is hope
and God has not abandoned him.
Chapter 38 – Dusk
Backed against a wall.
I know my fate
Hate my fate
Yet feel powerless against it.
The Captain - reasonable or not -
reigns in this wild,
distant world.
and I must obey.
I see a bad end
for us both.
Chapter 39 – First Night Watch
We know not
what lies in store, so
Why not laugh?
What’s worry for?
Why not laugh.
The bubbles that break
on your glass and mine,
the froth on our lips
from this ale divine,
We smile and we grin
guffaws to the brim,
cuz I’d rather not know
what’s coming, my friend.
Why not laugh?
Chapter 40 –Midnight, Forecastle
'Rig it, dig it, stig it, quig it,'
dance with me, sailor boy.
I’m far from home,
the seas I do roam
Let’s drink and dance
while we can!
'Crack, crack old ship!'
mind ya don’t take a tip
and land in the deep blue sea
'A row a row,'
and away we go
May God be with you and me.
Chapter 41 – Moby–Dick
Gnawed within and scorched without,
will there be anything left when all is done?
Of what is a man made?
Blood and bones and brute force
masquerade as Ahab,
but one must dig deeper
to find the real man.
Many have lost a battle
or even a limb
without losing heart and soul.
Ahab has made his choice
and will not turn back.
Chapter 42 – The Whiteness of the Whale
White
Vacuous
Vacant
Conjuring up Nothingness
A man can understand
Passion
Anger
Evil
But if void of color means
Unfeeling
Cold
Merciless
then the White Whale
truly terrifies.
Chapter 43 – Hark
Hark!
This is not our ship,
tho ‘twill be our home
for three long years.
Tread softly!
Do not disturb the man
who rules this
Floating
Revenge
Seeker.
Chapter 44 – The Chart
Eyes on the prize
Nose to the stone
Ahab’s single-minded purpose
drives his days
and ravages his dreams,
like
Escaping from a bed
that was on fire
No rest
No peace
No distractions.
Chapter 45 – The Affidavit
We fear what we do not understand.
Ignorance is not bliss
but an instigator, with
stories, fables, even downright lies
filling in the blanks
and believed true.
Men are moved by such things.
From ear to ear,
from man to man,
from ship to ship . . .
Careers made
Lives changed
and many, many,
whales slaughtered.
Chapter 46 – Surmises
Play your part, Ahab.
While your right eye
looks for your precious prey,
your left eye tends to the Pequod.
Pay your crew, keep them occupied
and they will not complain –
or worse, mutiny.
You will need them
on your side
at the first sign
of the White Whale.
Chapter 47 – The Mat–Maker
Chance, Free Will and Necessity
~ Necessity ~
The tasks of the day must be done
~ Free Will ~
Choose to do them or not
~ Chance ~
Toss in undependable risk
or opportunity.
Free Will lets me hope for Chance
to rescue me from Necessity,
but how long must I wait?
And when all collide –
then what?
Chance by turn rules either,
and as Life endlessly
weaves and intertwines,
tis Chance that
wields the last featuring blow.
Chapter 48 – The First Lowering
Finally!
After months of anticipation
tis time to lower the boats
and join the chase!
Focus – Pull – Row!!
If anyone be a fraud,
now’s the time to reveal it.
All eyes on the prize!
Sea legs ever steady ‘midst
the rolling of the waves!
Ah …
‘twas a forlorn hope.
Back to the Pequod we row,
drenched to the skin and
no whale to show for it.
Chapter 49 – The Hyena
What else to do but laugh --
laugh like a wild Hyena!
Tis a vast, practical joke,
this riding the back
of a whale
on a matchstick.
So sharpen the quill,
update the will, and
prepare to do it again
tomorrow.
Chapter 50 – Fedallah
Ahab’s unholy pursuit,
his single–minded revenge,
requires rare and
specialized assistance -
no run of the mill seamen
serve on this captain’s team,
and none are asked.
A hand-picked crew board secretly,
hide below,
and emerge only when needed.
Starbuck, Flask and Stubb
take it in stride.
Chapter 51 – The Spirit Spout
The waves rolled by like scrolls of silver.
til finally - ‘Thar she blows!’
Whether truth, imagining
or wishful thinking -
who could tell . . .
for no whale could be found.
And day followed day
followed day,
with only birds to jar the
Silence.
Chapter 52 – The Albatross
Bearded, bedraggled kinsmen
sail silently past
in a rusted ship,
the wind carrying them
towards the end of their circle,
ending where they began.
Schools of fish follow
as they leave the Pequod behind.
Is this our future?
Our own circuitous route
feels endless,
a barren maze,
with even Ahab subdued.
Chapter 53 – The Gam
A passing ship stops
and offers whaling
and weather reports
and the crew of the Pequod
rushes to greet it.
Ah, the relief of different faces!
Perhaps a chat with an old friend
of dear domestic things.
Maybe a letter
for the fortunate few
from a year ago or two,
offering precious news
of Home.
Chapter 54 – The Town–Ho’s Story
Take us away
from the deck or the hammock,
from monotony’s dulling glare.
Spin us a tale full of
grit, spit and spirit and
make us all wish we were there.
The stakes must be high
for those risking it all and
the hero, tall and well–featured.
And if you can,
let there be Moby-Dick,
that hideous, milky-white creature.
“The White Whale!
The White Whale!”
A chorus of woe
rises up with
excitement and dread.
But despite all the
fury and flurry of men,
tis not Moby-Dick
who lies dead.
Chapter 55 – Of the Monstrous Pictures of Whales
To do the whale justice with
pen, chalk or brush
ye must see him live,
in the flesh.
‘Tho ye run no small risk
out here at sea,
of bein’ undone
by yer curiosity.
Chapter 56 – Of the Less Erroneous Picture of Whales
This is personal.
As the self–appointed
Protector and Promotor
of all things Leviathan,
I take extreme umbrage at
sloppy, slipshod renderings
of the magnificent
Giant of the Sea.
Kudos to Garney and Durand
and honorable mention
to the French,
the lads for painting action.
Chapter 57 – Of Whales in Paint; in Teeth; in Wood; in Sheet-Iron;
in Stone; in Mountains; in Stars
Man hunts whale
whale does not hunt man.
And yet could, for there are
many more whales than ships,
a whale outweighs man and is in
his element in the vast ocean, while
man needs to be propped up in
wooden buckets that crack and
break like teacups when the
mighty forces of weather and
waves work against him.
And all the while, the
whale glides by or
slips below
to reemerge at his leisure
when the sea is smooth as glass.
Chapter 58 – Brit
We plow through
the yellow feeding fields
their home
their harvest
their sea
without an inkling
we've no right to do so.
“The cannibalism of the sea,”
says Man,
"Tis merely nature’s balance."
But Man is the intruder here,
an interloper from
the most docile earth,
who makes it
his life’s work
to Kill.
Chapter 59 – Squid
A profound hush surrounds the Pequod
as it drifts in the middle of nowhere,
with a stillness almost preternatural
spread over the sea.
At such a time,
what goes on inside
a sailor’s mind?
Thoughts of home?
Other ways to earn a living?
Ennui?
As a man looks out
over endless nothingness,
do thoughts churn busily
inside his skull . . .
or is Ismael an
Anomaly?
Chapter 60 – The Line
The magical, sometimes
horrible whale-line,
intricate and coiled in
perilous contractions,
twists in and out
with man in between.
Hold on tight --
But not too tight --
lest ye get
dragged to the bottom.
Chapter 61 – Stubb Kills a Whale
~ From Where I Sit ~
The Whale is a living, breathing
force of life
with as much right
to roam the seas
as I have the earth.
Its blood flows, its pulse pounds,
its appetite drives it forward,
and its joy as it leaps up
through the waves
must surely satisfy.
~ From Where You Sit ~
The Whale is a creature
born merely to serve you
and makes not
the slightest difference
except as a day’s work.
Your blood flows, your pulse pounds
your appetite drives you forward,
and your joy as you stalk him
through the waves
does surely satisfy.
Chapter 62 – The Dart
Listen to the newcomer,
for he looks at long-worn habit
with a fresh eye, and
with little understanding is
therefore better equipped to
see things as they are,
ask why, perhaps
offer solutions.
Listen to Ishmael.
Chapter 63 – The Crotch
Pay close attention.
Stalk your prey,
aim your harpoon
and then
stay out of its way -
lest you, not the beast be impaled.
Pay close attention.
Your life
depends upon it.
Chapter 64 – Stubb’s Supper
Does a whale have a soul?
When his last breath
leaves his body,
what happens
to the urge
to swim
to dive
to rise high
eat his fill of krill and
later, come back for more?
Tethered alongside the Pequod,
‘tis only a lifeless carcass now,
its once vibrant life force
returned to Nature
and welcomed back
into the fold.
Chapter 65 – The Whale as a Dish
All living beings are related.
'Tis true.
We share the same
earth, breathe the same air,
are warmed by the same sun.
Without ever doing harm to
our fellow creatures,
we could have plenty to eat,
yet
Some of Us
have gotten it into our heads
that 'these' are for petting,
and 'those' are for stalking
and killing
and eating.
Some of Us.
Chapter 66 – The Shark Massacre
Murder begets murder.
To protect the bounty
of a slain whale,
sailors attack and kill
sharks at their dinner.
And the sea runs
Red.
Chapter 67 – Cutting In (in lieu of)
Up and down
through the rows of our garden
we stroll and select
tonight’s supper.
Dazzling greens
Weighty gourds
Succulent citrus.
And all the while,
fresh bread rises and bakes,
and its intoxicating aroma meanders
under window panes
in search of our nostrils.
A meal void of cruelty,
misery or killing
satisfies the stomach
and the
Soul.
Chapter 68 – The Blanket
In the midst of
cutting the carnage,
herein we see
the rare virtue
of a strong individual vitality.
Man conquers nature once again.
But it takes many men
to accomplish the deed
and only one to question it
and begin to think of
a better way.
Chapter 69 – The Funeral
Oh, Horrible vultureism of earth!
No one mourns this whale
Let me!
Remember a life
Once mighty and free
Let me!
Sing his praises now he’s dead
A melancholy song inside my head
Never forgetting
He ruled the seas
Let me
Let me
Let me
Chapter 70 – The Sphinx
Shared atoms and linked analogies …
Musings of a demented mind
occasionally ring true
and offer Ahab a moment’s
enlightenment.
A whale goes where no man goes
and sees what no man will ever see.
What could a whale tell a man
that man does not know?
Ahab plunges deep and explores
without ever moving
from the deck of his ship.
Chapter 71 – The Jerobaum’s Story
Look not for meaning
in coincidence and happenstance.
Look not for gods in mere men.
Watch reason and order
fly out the window if you do.
Watch chaos reign
and disaster loom
if you dare lose control of the wits
God gave you,
and that made you a
Reasonable Man.
Chapter 72 – The Monkey Rope
We are tied to Providence –
fate or luck or God –
and blindly follow age-old beliefs.
But when the even-handed equity
of Providence
lets us down once again -
for we have only the
management of one end of it -
what then?
We may as well lean back
into the waves
and let them
determine our direction.
Chapter 73 – Stubb and Flash Kill a Right Whale;
And Then Have a Talk Over Him
Superstition and ignorance
find danger in everything -
leviathans of every sort,
suspicious crew members,
perhaps even the Devil himself,
whom Stubb and Flash
chat about disarming
while dissecting and disassembling
what threatens not at all
and indeed drifts away from them.
Meanwhile, the Captain’s shadow
ominously merges with said Devil,
blurring the line between
danger that is real
and danger that is imagined.
Chapter 74 – The Sperm Whale’s Head – Contrasted Views
The Whale
has two eyes with two views,
and simultaneously sees two sides
to every situation.
Man
has two eyes with one view,
and only sees straight ahead.
Yet, Man claims,
the former is inferior - yea,
inconvenient, even dangerous!
Man forgets that
each can turn his head
to take in the whole picture
whenever he chooses.
Still
Man’s way
is deemed superior
and all that makes sense,
for Man truly does see
only one view.
His Own.
Chapter 75 – The Right Whale’s Head – Contrasted Views
1.
Break apart a whale’s fins
- these hogs’ bristles -
and from them build the ladies
their busks and other contrivances
that lift and constrict every breath.
And to what end?
Vanity.
Man’s sport
becomes woman’s torture.
‘Ah, but what of the oil,’
you say,
‘The oil lights the world’
And I say the price paid –
the suffering, the slaughter –
is too steep.
The Right Whale’s Head – Contrasted Views
2.
Ancient dames moved about gaily
Above and beneath the sea
A playground, dining table, kingdom
For creatures ever joyful and free
Creatures ever joyful and free
Gracefully and powerfully ruled
Over miles and oceans and eons
And their offspring they carefully schooled
Their offspring they carefully schooled
From blowhole to brit to baleen
In charge of all that was ‘round them
And then came man in between
Then came man in between
Setting his sights far and wide
Craving what lay beyond him
He could never be satisfied
He could never be satisfied
On the oceans he would be king
More, ever more, not enough
Til he’d plundered everything.
Chapter 76 – The Battering Ram
Majestic green tower of the forest
reaches up
to the vaulted skies.
Massive grey power of the seas
dives down
to the deepest depths.
Each chopped up,
lined up,
and turned into
mere commodities
with a price set
by indifferent man.
A mass of tremendous life …
estimated as piled wood is – by the cord.
Chapter 77 – The Great Heidleburgh Tun
Killing
is a fastidious occupation.
Step by step,
as in a long cherished recipe,
care is taken
to dismantle
this magnificent creature
who evolved through the ages,
and kills never for sport
or profit
but merely to
Survive.
Chapter 78 – Cistern and Buckets
MAN OVERBOARD!
Swallowed up,
if a beast with no head
can be said to swallow.
MAN OVERBOARD!
Tashtego falls in,
disappears,
Queequeg follows.
MEN OVERBOARD!
Submerged
in the cavernous
Sweet-smelling hollow.
MEN OVERBOARD!
And up they both pop.
For ‘tis deadly to
Wallow.
Chapter 79 – The Prairie
Sum me up as you will.
I have no need to explain,
nothing to prove.
The ever invasive curiosity of man
must be satisfied, but
I need not justify
my existence
to those who seek
to destroy me.
Chapter 80 – The Nut
With a whale to behold
right up close,
and a combination of
observation and guesswork,
Ishmael analyzes
the inside and outside
of a creature
who swam the seas
millions of years
before man arrived
and draws his own
erroneous conclusions.
Chapter 81 – The Pequod Meets The Virgin
Ungrateful dogs,
down on yer knees,
ye’ve got no business here,
these are our seas!
Pathetic ye are,
with no oil of yer own.
Ye do not belong here,
so why not go home.
Will ya burst a blood vessel, lads?
Spit fire or not?
A humped back old whale
is better than naught.
So snag it and you’ll have
Hogshead in yer pot
Comon, snag it and you’ll have
Hogshead in yer pot.
Chapter 82 – The Honor and Glory of Whaling
Stars in his eyes,
neophyte Ishmael
scrolls through history
for heroes to emulate.
Surely men will write
of him one day
as he learns from the best
and waits his turn
to make his mark.
Chapter 83 – Jonah Historically Regarded
With all the time in the world,
a man can gaze at the horizon,
past a flat sea,
and ponder Jonah’s story
from every angle,
forming his own
Opinion
Chapter 84 – Pitchpoling
Pitchpoling
Whale rolling
Stubbs does excel.
Handling
Dandling
The lance he propels.
Aiming to kill,
Blood he does spill,
Sure footing
Caputting
There’s no parallel.
Chapter 85 – The Fountain
The snowy sparkling mist,
effervescing above a whale
as he emerges from the deep in
a swirl of prodigious commotion,
mystifies the sailor on watch.
Astonished and delighted
but not content with spectacle,
said sailor strives to understand -
the human anatomy serving
as his only reference.
How to make sense of
this curious creature
with misplaced windpipe,
no nostrils, and
a gargantuan ability to
hold his breath?
And what of that mist
shooting towards the sky?
He dare not get close enough
to find out.
Chapter 86 – The Tail
Woe to that sailor, whiskers and all,
when the fluke of a whale upon him does fall
and the oars and the crew and the harpoons do fly
til he’s floatin’ on his back starin’ up at the sky.
And the planks of the boat around him they sprawl
very much as a juggler tosses his balls.
Yea, a grudging respect is all he can feel
for a wallop that lands with the weight of steel.
A mere man can offer little resistance.
Tis something to admire –
but from a distance.
Chapter 87 – The Grand Armada
Amidst chaos,
tumult and brutality
lies an oasis of
tranquility,
an innermost fold of
warm, protected waters
where new mothers,
near enough for a
sailor’s gentle touch,
float below the
transparent surface
calmly nursing their
young, who gaze
dreamily into the
distance but do
not see their own
future fighting
futilely for its life.
Chapter 88 – Schools and Schoolmasters
The Lord whale is on patrol
Covering the flight of his ladies
Three times their size, he takes control
In their leisurely search of variety
Covering the flight of his ladies
He battles suitors who intrude.
In their leisurely search of variety
Tis he – only he – rules his brood
He battles suitors who intrude
Through this watery world as they wander
Tis he – only he – rules his brood
Swimming hither, thither and yonder
Through this watery world as they wander
The schoolmaster reigns – vital, strong
Swimming hither, thither and yonder
Until a younger Grand Turk comes along
The schoolmaster reigns – virile, strong
As he and his harem do roam
Until a younger Grand Turk comes along
Sending Lord whale off on his own
Chapter 89 – Fast-Fish and Loose-Fish
Man grabs
what he wants,
nailed down or not.
‘Twas ever so.
Like it?
Take it
Until there is
Nothing left.
Chapter 90 – Heads or Tails
Rare tea and good ale,
taken for granted by
the Privileged,
are a fantasy
to the Sailor,
who toils for months
for just a taste,
only to give it up
by Law
Tis mine
Tis mine
Tis mine
Chapter 91 – The Pequod Meets the Rosebud
A ship's its own domain
Out here at sea
Every man for himself
No brothers are we
I owe you nothing
Don’t need your name
Instead I’ll deceive you
We’re not the same
Listen to my story
As faithless as can be
About the sorry danger
Of floating debris
The Pequod’s guile
The Rosebud’s shame
Par for the course
In the whaling game
Chapter 92 – Ambergris
Sown in dishonor
but raised in glory.
Out of suffering
comes riches.
If not for the whale himself,
then for the scavengers
who pursue him.
Either way,
a life lived
free and wild and pure,
once finished,
leaves behind
a rich and fragrant
remembrance.
Chapter 93 – The Castaway
A small boy lost at sea,
insignificant and isolated,
is in the hands of the Gods.
Fear gives way to panic,
then panic to oblivion.
The thing is common
in that fishery.
Chapter 94 – A Squeeze of the Hand
The Pequod loses
the salty stench
of sailor sweat and ribaldry,
overtaken by the scent
of spring violets,
as up to our elbows in
oozy, convivial buckets,
we lose track of
our hands that
squeeze! squeeze! squeeze!
every last lump from
the creature’s
fragrant spermaceti.
Lulled by the spell
of our sated senses,
we lose,
but only temporarily,
what drives us.
Compete.
Kill.
Conquer.
Chapter 95 – The Cassock
Nothing is off–limits
in the decimation
of a species.
no part holy
or respected,
but instead
mere fodder for
abuse or entertainment.
R.I.P.
Chapter 96 – The Try–Works
Whether your hand be on the tiller
(Never dream with thy hand on the helm!)
or the bedpost,
nighttime has a crafty way
of turning dark things darker,
scarier, more threatening.
Especially at risk is that man
prone to contemplation,
for there are no limits to
such a mind when the sun sets
and the moon disappears.
All he can do is
pray for morning,
when the light of day
puts to rest
the torments
of the night before.
Chapter 97 – The Lamp
Bearded and grimy
with faces lit like angels,
off–duty watch rock softly
in their oaken vaults,
soothed by the sea’s rhythm
and sleeping the sleep
of the
uncomplicated mind.
Chapter 98 – Stowing Down and Clearing Up
Tis in whaling as in Life,
there is no rest,
for one thing follows another.
No matter how arduous,
still harder tasks will come
and often a man
just catches his breath
when along comes another.
So what is the point, exactly?
Like Pythagoras –
and sometimes like Sisyphus -
we labor, we learn, we complain and we moan.
Over and over and over again.
Chapter 99 – Doubloon
A coin serves as a magician’s glass
as each man gazes into
his own mysterious self
and sees what he wants to see.
What will said coin buy?
What does it stand for?
Read a man by
how he reads a coin.
Chapter 100 – Leg and Arm. The Pequod of Nantucket Meets the Samuel Enderby of London
'Spin me the yarn,’
says Ahab, eyes sharp,
no time for small talk.
Stick to the point.
Tell me where the
white whale wanders
and I’ll be gone.
Chapter 101 – The Decanter
First things first
says one sailor to another
Forget the pay
what’s to drink, brother?
Before I set
one leg upon this ship,
Before ya say
where we’re off to on this trip,
I’ll make it plain
and tell ya face to face -
I ain’t going without gin,
I drink it by the case.
By the case
By the case
By the case, case, case
I can drink it night and day
while still whalin’ away
By the gill by the quart
By the barrel, any sort
Tell me do ye carry gin, man
by the case?
Chapter 102 – A Bower in the Arsacides
I Looked Down
in the stillness.
Lush grass glistened
and shards of sunlight made
patterns on the leafy vines
that crawled around and through
a white, worshipped skeleton.
I Looked Up.
At this outline
of a creature who'd
soared up through the waves,
down to the depths
and imagined it.
Boldly, thrillingly, alive.
Chapter 103 – Measurement of The Whale’s
Skeleton
Inches and yards do not mark
the true worth of any creature -
not whale nor man.
Ask the poet,
call in the philosopher
to mine the meaning
of such a creature
whose immensity, character,
and soaring energy
display none of
the calculation
or manipulation
of its captor.
Chapter 104 -– The Fossil Whale
Man stares out over the vast ocean,
at gray blue swells
as far as the eye can see,
and feels reduced to
the size of a thimble or
a cork that bobs powerlessly on
on the endless surface, no more
substantial than a dot on a map
and as insignificant
as the gargantuan leviathan
who, spotted miles away,
seems but a dot himself
on the boundless vista.
Man stares next into earth’s vast history,
at eons of time and space
and experience without his presence,
and feels dwarfed once again,
an infinitesimal speck,
but this time not joined
by the Ancient Whale,
who populated the planet
and explored the seas
some 40 million years ago,
when man ‘twas not
even a dream.
Chapter 105 – Does the Whale's Magnitude
Diminish?—Will He Perish?
'He swam the seas
before the continents
broke water,'
Ishmael muses,
as he eyes the slaughter.
Are they declining, asks
the man with a conscience?
Will they be diminished
says the man, with prescience.
Next he turns to
other beasts hunted,
and finds them all
equally confronted.
The buffalo. The elephant.
Brothers to the whale,
Living creatures turned into
products for sale.
Chapter 106 – Ahab’s Leg
Even a ship’s carpenter
cannot mend a dead bone.
He must start from scratch,
enlisting leftover ivory
from recent kills,
making them willing
accomplices in Ahab’s
deadly business.
Chapter 107 – The Carpenter
Were it not for a
certain grizzled wittiness,
this fixture of The Pequod
might be mistaken for a
permanent part of the futtock,
so seamlessly does the
weathered and sea-worthy carpenter,
ensconced at his bench,
blend into the deck.
Be it rusty capstan,
aching tooth or
cracked appendage,
he offers both an opinion
and a solution.
Chapter 108 – Ahab and The Carpenter
A man on a voyage of evenge
loathes being slowed down
by phantom nerves that,
like haunted memories,
tingle, stab and chafe
a leg no longer there.
Grim reminders
that stop Ahab
not at all.
Chapter 109 – Ahab and Starbuck in the Cabin
'Beware of thyself, old man,'
warns Starbuck,
long years with Ahab
shoring up his resolve
to speak candidly -
hang the consequences.
A shred of prudence,
perhaps remorse,
even decency,
calms the furrows
in Ahab’s brow,
reminding him for
one brief moment
that lunacy
is a choice.
Chapter 110 – Queequeg in His Coffin
Queequeg’s had a change ’o heart.
Why die when you’ve more to do?
And so, like Lazarus, he rises
and postpones his adieu.
His custom coffin will suffice
for sailor’s gear and such
And Queequeg’s daring carvings
nicely decorate his hutch.
O devilish tantalization,
What a riddle to unfold,
When a man
makes up his mind
to live,
Tis a miracle to behold.
Chapter 111 – The Pacific
'Tis not the whale
who fouls the waters,
filled with rage
and past forgetting.
Tis not the whale
who hunts the man
and curses a day he
keeps regretting.
'Tis man alone who
plots and schemes
and lies awake
and cannot dream.
Tis man alone
who seals his fate
by losing his soul
to so much hate.
Chapter 112 – The Blacksmith
The curse of the fatal cork is patient
with a man felled by the drink.
He who caused
destruction and heartbreak
and lost all.
So, too, must the man be patient,
with no other choice
but to live out his sentence
and endlessly circle the globe
as his hammer marks
another day,
another year,
of regret.
Chapter 113 – The Forge
For Ahab’s long-anticipated kill
only the finest weapons will do,
imagined through comfortless nights
as he tosses and turns
in sweat and sheet
Aand endured through
bleak days as he endlessly
paces the deck,
the thonk of his alabaster leg
an unrelenting reminder that
fuels obsessive revenge.
Chapter 114 – The Gilder
Soothing waters
Warm sunshine
Utter quiet, save the lap
of gentle waves.
No time,
only this moment,
to hear oneself think
and even thoughts are calm.
Man is not always greedy,
blood-thirsty and
hungry to conquer.
On such a day,
a man meets his other self,
his better self.
Would it would last
forever.
Chapter 115 – The Pequod Meets The Bachelor
Success breeds success,
likewise grim resolve.
Might such a morbid
mission end well?
Restore a leg?
Revive a heart?
Renew the reason
a man goes to sea
in the first place?
Is rebirth possible?
Yes.
Not by the Creator,
but by the man himself.
Chapter 116 – The Dying Whale
I am buoyed by breaths
of once living things.
We are all connected,
all yearn towards
the same fiery sun that
gives us life, yet burns
undisturbed and unmoved
when we perish.
We can butturn away and sigh,
leaving life to those
who come after.
Chapter 117 – The Whale Watch
Floating in and out of sleep
beside his kill
in the empty, bleak night,
Ahab dreams of death, with
visions of hearses and gallows
startling him awake.
‘Immortal on land and on sea,’
he insists, with a hollow laugh,
fooling no one.
Least of all himself.
Chapter 118 – The Quadrant
Ask the impossible from a mere tool
and prepare to toss it aside in disgust.
Far better to seek a
psychic, a fortune teller
or even a shooting star
to guide you to that one spot
among all others
where Moby-Dick
lies in wait.
Chapter 119 – The Candles
The flame that can’t be snuffed
not by breath nor breeze nor wave,
burns a hole deep inside Ahab
and keeps the old man enslaved.
‘The sea will have its way,’ says Stubb,
and so a sailor believes.
But the sea is no match for the fire
by which Ahab is deceived.
It seers his eyes as he stands before
lightning, torch and typhoon.
Yet all he sees is Moby–Dick
‘Soon,’ he promises, ‘Soon.’
Chapter 120 – The Deck Towards the End of the First Night Watch
And so
the decline begins.
Claws of mania
encircle
clutch
choke all reason.
Sinking into the depths,
Ahab shouts and threatens,
patience long discarded and
tunnel vision turning him
not only blind but deaf.
.Save your breath,
my Captain,
Moby-Dick cannot hear you.
Chapter 121 – Midnight.—The Forecastle Bulwarks
A
Sailor
is anchored
to his ship
His ship
to the ocean
The ocean
to the planet
The planet
which feels steady and
solid as granite
floats and spins
held down
by He
who planned it
and the whims
of those who stand on’t.
Chapter 122 – Midnight Aloft.—Thunder and Lightning
Boom!
My heart thumps.
Bang!
My brain throbs.
Crack!
The mainsail splits.
Save the ship
Save myself
Save some RUM
Chapter 123 – The Musket
Ahab wrestles with the Devil in his sleep
as Starbuck hovers at the door,
knowing his captain’s awakening
will unleash even more madness.
Save Thyself, Starbuck!
This musket you cradle,
once aimed at you,
could now end the delirium
and turn the Pequod home –
Save Thyself, Starbuck!
Think of your wife!
Your boy!
Your crew!
The Devil awakens soon …
Do it now, do it now, do it now -
Save Thyself, Starbuck!
Chapter 124 – The Needle
After raging weather,
glorious, soothing sunlight
warms sea and ship and,
like giants' palms outspread,
enormous swells lazily
nudge the ship along.
But wait – in which direction?
With a dose of reality
and geography,
our Captain breaks the sun’s spell
and sets the Pequod
back on course.
Chapter 125 – The Log and Line
In the midst of obsession
and delusion
beats a heart.
“Thou touchest my
inmost centre, boy,”
says Ahab, taking little Pip
by the hand.
So lies a sliver of hope,
a faint recognition of
what a man once was
before madness took hold.
But life holds thee; not thou it,
and Ahab’s destiny awaits him.
Chapter 126 – The Life–Buoy
Not even one sailor
can be saved
by a ship
ill-equipped for rescue
and hell-bent
on a devil’s errand.
Do what you’re told.
Turn a corpse’s bed
into a life buoy
and be quick about it.
Chapter 127 – The Deck
May the song that ye sing
light yer way
ease yer load
Hey, hey
May the ring of yer mallet
be the tune
of yer ode
Hey
Not a thought in yer head
to intrude on the task
But a little conversation
makes the job go fast
Sing a song if ye like
to the beat of this spike
Nail it in
Hey, hey
Nail it in.
Chapter 128 – The Pequod Meets The Rachel
Camaraderie and Kinship
Fatherhood and Mercy,
All wiped out
in one incomprehensible
moment of callous disregard.
“Captain Gardiner, I will not do it.”
A revengeful heart is
full to the brim
with room for naught else.
Chapter 129 – The Cabin
I hear ivory above me
it comes and it goes
My captain please let me
lighten your load.
Wherever the need is
Pip will be
I will spot the white whale
leave it all to me.
I am spinning in your chair
bring me up, sir, to your side
On the deck of the Pequod
you and I will take a ride!
Chapter 130 – The Hat
Ahab’s iron soul
shuns all
but his intended prey.
Like the workhorse,
Hate wears blinders
and sees not left nor right,
but only straight ahead to
its narrow destination.
Chapter 131 – The Pequod Meets the Delight
So close, so close, so close
Only a day away
See there, that tattered whaleboat …
Over yonder, a foolish victim sliding
into his watery grave …
Only yesterday men faced
the White Whale
but were no match for him –
Ha!
He is mine, all mine
and I am closing in.
Chapter 132 – The Symphony
Is it I, God, or who,
that lifts this arm
to such a sky
up where melodies lie
and breezes sing
and soothe and conjure up
home and wife and boy
and a pillow left behind
that quietly beckon.
And if the great sun itself,
that doth shine down on us all,
be but an errand-boy in heaven –
what of me?
What power hath I
when this tune turns to
ravings and dark thoughts
to nail me to a vendetta
as surely as a butterfly
pinned to a page,
with no escape.
Can I lift this arm,
cast out this craving,
and
find another song?
Chapter 133 – The Chase – First Day
In a culmination of
frenzied anticipation,
the ultimate prize presents itself.
Rising from the waves with
a hump like a snow-hill . . .
MOBY-DICK AT LAST!
Ahab is ready.
Fearless!
And tossed
overboard.
Chapter 134 – The Chase – Second Day
"Fool! I am the Fates’ lieutenant,"
Ahab confides to Starbuck,
"I act under orders."
Unlike God, Fate has no mercy,
its urgency a
driving force that ignores
all good angels
mobbing thee with warnings.
Reason and caution
play no part
in a feverish mind.
Chapter 135 – The Chase – The Third Day
The sea is calm,
gentle waves lapping
and sunlight shining through
their transparent folds
in shades of gold
and green and blue.
No trace remains of
what transpired here …
The chase
The chaos
The splattered bodies
and scattered
planks of wood that
were once a ship …
Does any of it matter?
Tis the same sea Noah knew
lo, these five thousand years.
Nothing’s changed.
Man’s hubris continues
unabated,
but makes no difference
at all.
Epilogue
The story must be told
and so a life is spared.
Lessons must be learned
but each man
is his own teacher,
and each will take
what he will
and leave the rest,
which scatters like
discarded driftwood
and floats away
to wash up
on distant shores.
Of use to no one.
The white whale
and his brethren,
uninterested in man,
go their own way,
until the next ship
and the next crew
try to leave
their mark
on this vast,
unknowable
and indifferent sea
where, ultimately,
all evidence
will be washed away.
bottom of page