I'd rather be the ship that sails And rides the billows wild and free; Than to be the ship that always fails To leave its port and go to sea. I'd rather feel the sting of strife, Where gales are born and tempests roar; Than to settle down to useless life And rot in dry dock on the shore. I'd rather fight some mighty wave With honor in supreme command; And fill at last a well-earned grave, Than die in ease upon the sand. I'd rather drive where sea storms blow, And be the ship that always failed. To make the ports where it would go, Than be the ship that never sailed. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...TO THE PEACOCK OF FRANCE by MARIANNE MOORE AURENG-ZEBE, OR THE GREAT MOGUL: PROLOGUE by JOHN DRYDEN THE TWELVE-FORTY-FIVE (FOR EDWARD J. WHEELER) by ALFRED JOYCE KILMER THE SKELETON IN ARMOR by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW PEARLS OF THE FAITH: 66. AL-I'HLAS by EDWIN ARNOLD |