she was crying
in the sea
unloved and worn
she spoke to me

her heart and boards
were long ripped out
her diesel engine
left in doubt

yet I heard her
heard her true
in her estuary
of blue

I spent a fortune
on her hull
I slept beneath
the dawning gull

weeping wounds
carved by years
open sores
wept salted tears

a friend helped me
with her coat
a rising tide
lifts every boat

and I rescued her
that year
out of wet rot
out of fear

yet twas she
who rescued me
with my work
upon the quay

less days
to think of you
my retro thinking
hours few

the odd bewildered
passerby
would enquire of me
"Why?"

this dishevelled
bearded man
eating something
from a can

I thank the thousands
that walked past
who saw her place in life
as last

they failed to stop
and read the signs
they saw no beauty
in her lines