just once more

as a bard once more,

i make my way carefully down

the sandy dunes to 

where the ocean laps hungrily

at the shore

sunlight catches the edge of

a finely crafted sword,

and i pick it up with the

memory of rum and stormy

seas on the tip of my tongue

and there is a ship waiting

for me, out past the breakers,

if i am willing to swim

and i find that i am,

breaking into a run

towards that beckoning water,

sword left in the sand to

mark where i once stood

and a ship so fine as this,

gifted to a humble bard,

and a pirate worth his salt,

where i will sail across every

sea and bring you home

rubies and soft fabrics

and so many stories

when the cowboy finds he

has grown tired of chasing

that horizon, i will

return to you

shedding the pirates long-coat,

bidding the bard and his bleeding

heart farewell, the cowboy rows

back to shore and welcomes

the feeling of that sandy shore

under his boots once more