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Brothers of the Sea
For decades long our lives entwined
Through times and advancing years
Many happy, fun filled moments
Some sadly filled with tears
As young lads in the summer
We spent our time at play
Sailing boats and catching fish
Sure signs of our future days
Our lives set out before us
School work such a chore
The seas salt water in our blood
Kept pulling us to the shore
The call of the sea was all we knew
Growing up as little boys
The family boats our playground
No time for books or toys
Splicing ropes and mending nets
Was much more in our line
Filling needles for the experts
With various grades of twine
Watch their fingers flying fast
Knives cutting out bad tears
Filled needles at the ready
To mend them and repair
Stories filled our keen young minds
Of their exploits in the past
Our faces filled with wonder
Of seas so wild and vast
At last we took that final step
Going from the land to sea
The years of wait and longing
Now our spirits sailing free
What wonders lay before us
Of this we can both agree
From the calm of summer sunset
To cold winter’s raging sea
Our lives now drifting far apart
Now the cruel sea tried to sever
But that deep bond of our childhood
Would keep us close forever
Through the years you made your mark
You raised the bar above the rest
Skill and hard work shining through
You joined the very best
My life changed much later
A different road I travelled down
But still the sea held me in it’s grasp
The bond still firm and sound
Now our twilight years upon us
We can look back and recall
The vastness of all the oceans
With boats so fragile and small
Our lives still bound together
Now we have found a quiet lea
No more rolling on the ocean
But our spirit still sails free.
Jim Campbell