The Bowthruster______________________________

for Frank and Yvonne Cushnahan

 

The ferry is manoeuvring on the Lagan;

In the foreground is a neat well-rounded man.

He kept the ship on course, safe and sea-worthy,

Captained it and tied it at the dock.  

The Dowager Marchioness of Donegal and all the history, 

The place itself,

The Harbour ticking-over like a clock.

 

 

You have to have bow-thrusters on the Lagan,

To turn when tides are running from the sea;

The masterpiece with Nelson in the ballroom -

A tale of towns as they were meant to be.

 

 

And all the poetry and the Limavaddy air up there;

The giant yellow cranes holding the whole place up for years,

The honeyed voices, sharpened wits and laughter -

Dukes, Earls and Excellencies applying pressure on the piers.

 

 

It is one of life’s fulfilments to see a master ply his trade.

The way the blacksmith calms the dray,

The pilot guides a liner round the sandbanks,

The welder makes with sparks the steel obey.

 

 

A siren on the waterside is sounding now;

A different sound today, I hear it wail.

A knot is being untied another anchored -

Another ship is docking, one sets sail