The Merchant Seaman

He was turbulent, fearful, and a dipsomaniac. He was dead to the target, undeniable emulation of his father. So I've been told. Equated with many of his uneducated and socially stigmatized peers, starting at an early age he worked menial jobs until he married and asserted himself to a position on a cargo ship as a Merchant Seaman. So I've been told. He traveled the world and had many long tales to share. Tales when spread made him a hero of many causes, and these inflated tales rein the peninsula and many compared him with John Henry and Jack Johnson. So I've been told. He was a tall sepia man with a handsome face that was divinely chiseled to the image of Hermes. So I've been told. He was a courageous bull that suffered his demise at the hands of his enemy. So I've been told. He was a vigorous bear with broad shoulders that expanded forever like the Baeke plateau and was a comforting pillow for my weary head. His legs when stretched out from a sitting position was a nuisance, a tripping device for a young child whose vision was aimed high when walking by. He smelled of stale tobacco and Old Spice. His tatami cheeks pricked fingers to the touch with delightful pain. His long fingers with soil underneath its horny protective covering could move swiftly over finger plates of a saxophone or skillfully up and down the fretted neck of a guitar if he, so willed. Yet he titillated my ribs, under my arms and the soles of my feet. His voice vociferated like thunder at his adversaries and changed to an astonishing softer degree when he called my name. This I know and so you are now being told. copyright Labyrinth of Life