Dan Hampson

Embarcation Lounge

after a painting by Dan Hampson

are they in a dream already

or are they waiting
for a dream to start

these sad blue sailors
at this departure point
for an unknown world

no sailor wants to catch another’s eye
no sailor wants to give away his thoughts
no sailor wants to appeal for love

look at them

they are dispensable
they have interchangeable walk-on parts
in the glamour of a confident captain’s narrative

but each knows he will have to be a hero
if out of the blue should appear a reef
a storm
an iceberg
a landfall without hope

sad blue sailors
huddled in the bottom of their own picture
inward-looking, wary and homeless

waiting for colour
and the dream of release

to start

 

Sue Boyle