Wanderlust

As a boy he refused to sit still,
He crawled in caves and plumbed ponds;
Climbed hills and brought back fronds;
To see it all, that was his will.

On a trip to the coast he saw a ship,
Invincible upon the sea surf;
He knew straight his life's calling
And joined their crew for an infinite trip.

He worked and drank and sang with his men,
And ne'er did he know a boring day;
The sea and the stars enchanted him,
And his spirits soared unbidden.

In the winds and the waves they put their trust,
And pirates they fought and storms they rode,
Far they sailed and wonders they saw,
And ne'er did they stop, ne'er did they stop,
For they were struck by wanderlust.

They put to shore on a distant port,
And settled down for repair;
They wandered the town and brought cheer
For making merry was their forte.

A thief there stole our hero's heart
With pretty brown eyes and a ready smile,
Curly locks and a voice divine.
And eager he was to every day's start.

Being away from her became a chore,
And he shared her love for the twinkling stars,
The cottony clouds, the cool light breeze,
And spinning 'round in meaningless terpsichore.

But the time at last came to depart,
"Don't go," she pleaded, and his heart was rent,
"But a sailor's what I am, and sailing's what I do,
I have to go, on the morrow I start."

"Damn your love for the sea,"
She cried, "Fool am I to fall
For a man whose love for her
Exceeds his love for me!"

She ran home and shut the door,
And the sailor trudged on board.
His mood was black as the moonless sky,
As his ship left the shore.

Long years after that fateful night
As he glanced upon the shimmering waves
He imagin'd he saw those sparkling brown eyes
And he found his heart squeezed tight.

But in the winds and the waves he put his trust,
And pirates he fought and storms he rode,
Far he sailed and wonders he saw,
And he ne'er could stop, no, he ne'er could stop,
For he was struck by wanderlust.