I Won't Forget You Even If You Limp

Matthias Pantaleon

Saturday 18 April 2020

The old anchor lay waste at sea, plague with rust

As the tide reaches its thigh, higher it goes

Nightmare hunts its shank, for it lays idle in seabed

Still, it never forgets how to keep a ship stable

You are the old anchor that keeps me afloat

Now, you cannot keep yourself from drifting

Mist and moist makes beauty pass for beast

I will remember you for your steadfastness

For my heart follows where the sun cruises

Up to the point where it bends into the mangrove

I'll wait for you where the tide and shore kisses

And the wavelets somersault like goldfishes

Do not somersault out of your own skin

I know that ghost; the hale and the shame

Life owes nobody; expect no ale, no horn

And there would be no wild goose chase

Instead of fighting with battered ego

Make peace with you. Amend your excesses

In the end, there will always be surplus

Let me tell you something you already know

Life is not fair - I got a fair share

Compared to the risk of living

My share is not proportional, however

I'm grateful - a slice is gracious plenty

You have to survive Armageddon,

To be named a veteran

Learn to live one day with a clear head

Survive night rain, but

If you come to misfortune as I feared

Losing your boathouse and ships to loan shark

I will never keep my ship from your island

And I won't forget you, even if you limp