Poems and Translations from the Ancient Celtic Bards

TO THE SEA.

Then absence of his wonted: usual or habitual cares
To fond affection stronger bears
The forms in faithful memory set—
The soil The sailor's homeland or native country. he never will forget!

He paces much the well-trimmed bark: a sailing vessel,
And views the long familiar mark;
Or, lounging on the prostrate: lying flat sail,
Lists: listens to a messmate’s: a fellow sailor who eats at the same table curious tale;
Or wistfully he travels o’er
The pages of romantic lore: stories of adventure, heroism, or legend;
Or strives in useful sport to slay
The feathered or the finny prey: a poetic way of saying fish;
Or from the flute he wins a strain
That cheers the heart with pleasing pain: a bittersweet feeling; a sense of nostalgia or longing..

And when long days of musing: deep or quiet thought past
Have brought him tedious tedious: tiresome and boring due to being too long or slow. hours at last,
To steer away he would be fain: glad or happy to do so,
And whistles for the breeze in vain. A traditional maritime superstition where sailors would whistle to "call" the wind during a calm.
Then, thoughtful bending o’er to view
In thee The sailor looks into the sea, using the water as a mirror. his rude: rough, rugged, or unrefined form mirrored true,
Thee for no adverse fate he blames,
But yields the love a parent claims. Despite the hardships of a life at sea, the sailor does not harbor bitterness; he views the ocean with the same devotion one might hold for a parent.