"A Shipwreck in Stormy Seas" by Vernet‘The Sky’: A Poem by Margaret Brinton The Society May 8, 2025 Beauty, Poetry 2 Comments . The Sky _I’m watching the storm_From the sea coming in,Windy and rowdy and gray._The raindrops begin_And the gale makes a spin.Pelicans swoop o’er the bay. _A downpour at last_With some lightning and flash,Thrashing the coast and the cay._As thunderclouds boom_And the sky threatens doom,Nature makes good at its play. _The sky reigns supreme;_Be it so, it shall deem.Never we know, how it may._We only can bide_When the sky opens wideFor we are just mortals of clay. . . Margaret Brinton has lived in San Diego’s inland valley area for over forty years where she taught and tutored. Her poems have recently been published in California Quarterly and Westward Quarterly and The Lyric with upcoming work in the greeting card industry. NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. ***Read Our Comments Policy Here*** 2 Responses Margaret Coats May 8, 2025 Margaret, your expanding perspective here very much suits the subject. You begin with “I,” a single observer feeling raindrops and seeing pelicans, who in the second stanza is overwhelmed as the storm arrives. The third stanza is yet larger than the storm, with the sky reigning supreme over the many “mortals of clay” beneath it. I like, as well, the move from “doom” in the second stanza to its associated verb “deem” in the third. This helps present the sky as a monarch who can “judge” all below. A gradual and artful presentation of the awesome majesty above as seen by a poet attentive to detail! Reply Roy Eugene Peterson May 8, 2025 Margaret, I love the rhyme scheme that is carried out through the three verses. Your words paint a picture of the storm coming in from the sea that conjures up the vision in my mind of the Gulf Coast with the pelicans that “swoop over the bay.” Delightful and enjoyable depiction. Reply Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Margaret Coats May 8, 2025 Margaret, your expanding perspective here very much suits the subject. You begin with “I,” a single observer feeling raindrops and seeing pelicans, who in the second stanza is overwhelmed as the storm arrives. The third stanza is yet larger than the storm, with the sky reigning supreme over the many “mortals of clay” beneath it. I like, as well, the move from “doom” in the second stanza to its associated verb “deem” in the third. This helps present the sky as a monarch who can “judge” all below. A gradual and artful presentation of the awesome majesty above as seen by a poet attentive to detail! Reply
Roy Eugene Peterson May 8, 2025 Margaret, I love the rhyme scheme that is carried out through the three verses. Your words paint a picture of the storm coming in from the sea that conjures up the vision in my mind of the Gulf Coast with the pelicans that “swoop over the bay.” Delightful and enjoyable depiction. Reply
