Ocean Pearl (From Pirates Songs) Poem by Isabel Szurlej

The ship like a well-dressed woman:
Slender and fast,
Ballasted well with a crowd of men around her.
She moves forward and her sails rustle
Like wide skirts to supply power
Their touch makes her come to life.
She skitters lightly, this way and that
Tunes with the sea and shakes her stern.
Lifting her sturdiest prow higher she
Tosses her masts in the figure eights.
She sails around and shallow and deep
Bends with the wind, steeped salt water, and
Like a wild steed breaks into a smart
Canter with her two mast over the waves.
Despite the ostensible lightheartedness, she does
Incredible efforts to protect those who depend on her.

Ninety men in the grip of the water indulge the time
Willing to attack galleons even those heavily armed.
Desperate courage coping with death
Protracts their fate with an ounce of lead.