i have seen the storm clouds gathering,
to grind eastward, further eastward
from the dark, unknown, western seas,
cumulonimbus towering clouds, they be
dark and threatening hammers Poseidon
hurls from the depths of the Pacific
so ironic in its meaning
for clouds foreboding such as these.
they come with winds of fury,
stampeding stallions of the sky
breathing fiery winds of peril.

the sea, blacker than its previous blue,
began to flicker with whitecaps,
the gentle rolls grew to choppy
waves with no discernible direction:
frightening omen of the coming storm.

when i saw the storm a’coming,
i did not fear while others on deck
cowed and shrank in fear and
loathing for the gods of the sea.
back then, i was a swashbuckler,
a mariner with no fear,
now, i might shudder,
no, not back then, not back then.
now, i’m just glad
i was then and now is now
for i got to see
the cumulonimbus storming clouds,
the stampeding winds,
the frothing sea
while not afraid,
but awed by her fearsome beauty.