Fateful Journey - For Riette Roos Poem by Charl JF Cilliers

Mother, I cast my net so wide
that stars and fish were caught inside,
but the hungry storm raging in my heart
echoed the lashing waves to starboard and to port.

I took my kit from beneath the stairs
and sailed before dawn under icy stars.
The money I kept in the old jam jar
was long used up and we needed more.

Don’t wait for me beside the quay
with crisp brown bread and sugared tea,
and do not mourn when the sun is gone
and still my journey is not done.

I left you a note under the stone
to send you the love of your only son,
so you can have something when you’re alone.

(I prayed to the one true God I knew:
if you’ve found this, my prayers have not come true.)