Today's transmission.
An evocative poem which processes a devastating breakup through a blend of romanticism, Greek mythology, and historical maritime imagery.
Core Theme & Narrative Arc.
The poem tracks a painful emotional journey:
Navigating a tragic, final parting while fiercely holding onto the hope of future healing.
The Departure:
It opens with a quiet, devastating farewell ("two lonely unloved ghosts") where the speaker accepts that a beautiful relationship has collapsed.
The Sabotage:
The speaker externalises the relationship's breakdown, blaming both internal human frailty ("emerald eyes") and a personified mythological terror.
The Defeat & Rebirth:
After experiencing deep isolation and numbness ("eating crumbs of defeat"), the speaker undergoes a powerful psychological shift.
They reject despair, reclaim their autonomy, and arm themselves spiritually to love again.
Key Imagery & Symbolic Motifs:
Mythology (Deimos):
Deimos is the Greek god of dread and terror.
By dressing this god of terror in mundane, casual clothing ("a white Captain Bligh shirt and / Old nineties / Faded Levi's blue jeans"), the poem makes the abstract terror of heartbreak feel chillingly modern, familiar, and personal.
The Mutiny / Maritime Metaphors:
The mention of Captain Bligh and Fletcher Christian invokes the famous historical Mutiny on the Bounty.
The speaker views themselves as Fletcher Christian.
A man forced into rebellion, cast out, and sailing away on a lonely, uncertain new mission after a total collapse of order.
The Nightingale vs. The Martial Eagle:
The Nightingale represents the fragile, beautiful love that "upped suddenly / And flown / Away."
The Martial Eagle represents the speaker’s resilient soul.
It is a powerful, predatory African eagle, symbolising that the speaker's heart will eventually soar with dominance and strength rather than remaining a victim.
The Armour of Hope:
The climax features classic chivalric imagery.
The "diamond-encrusted sword called Hope" and the silver shield serve as psychological defences against the "gossips, racketeers, [and] gaslighters" of the outside world.
The Latin Motto:
The Turning Point.
The emotional hinge of the poem is the Latin inscription on the shield:
"Veniet Amor Cum Paratus Sum" — Love will come when I'm ready.
This inscription marks the transition from the "crumbs of defeat" to "Freedom's Sandy Yellow shores."
It represents a conscious decision by the speaker's "higher self" to stop grieving the past relationship and to "go to war" for their own peace of mind.
It changes the narrative from one of passive victimhood to active, defiant readiness.
Tone and Style:
Stream-of-Consciousness:
The lack of traditional stanza breaks and punctuation creates an urgent, sweeping rhythm. It mimics a mind tumbling through grief, memories of Malibu Street, and sudden bursts of defiance.
Contrast:
The poem brilliantly contrasts epic, grand-scale concepts (divine plays, golden swords, the god Deimos) with incredibly gritty, realistic pop-culture and modern phrasing (90s Levi's jeans, gaslighters).
This keeps the deeply romantic pain grounded in the real world.
Ultimately, the poem acts as a rebellious declaration.
While it begins as a sorrowful parting gift, it ends as a battle cry—proving that while the love has walked out, the speaker's capacity to love survives.
Shall we begin?
The Sailor's Monologue.
(A lone voice whispers)
Take this
As a now bearable parting gift
From someone who will always love you
The most
As we bid our last painful goodbyes
After renouncing
All known ties
And departing
Like two lonely unloved ghosts
Into life's
Slow-moving mists
For
It's been a wonderful dream
But the dark god
Deimos
From The Great In-Between
Now let in
By emerald eyes
Hidden or seen
To slow shadow walk
Towards us
As we drift
Has gloriously
Destroyed us
Smiling
Wearing
A white Captain Bligh
shirt and
Old nineties
Faded Levi's blue jeans
Grinning like a mad fool
In our slipstream
At the joy and wonder
Of all our frail emotional screams
Which creep in
In extreme
Sinful ways
As we fall apart
At the seams
In the fading lights
Each midnight
Or in so many dark, secretive corners
Everyday
For our deep love
Like an abandoned
Nightingale
Has upped suddenly
And flown
Away
Once
In a vision
Or a divine play
I saw you
Lovingly
Looking my way
On Malibu Street
But now
Feeling cold and
Numb
Eating crumbs of
Defeat
Like an outcast,
A leper
A reborn
Fletcher Christian
Sailing away
On a new mission
I beg you, Please look away
For even though
I'm broken in two
Constantly
Thinking of you
My sad heart
Will once more soar
Like a Martial Eagle
In full flight
When true love
Eventually returns
And she knocks
Hard
On my tired hearts
Beating door
Pleading to be let in once more
But until then
Gossips
Racketeers
Gaslighters
And every incarnation of the known Devil
Hear my rebellious lions roar
As my soul
Stands so ready and majestically
Tall
Holding a golden, sharp, diamond-encrusted sword called Hope
Clutching a solid silver shield with
Veniet Amor Cum Paratus Sum (L)
Inscribed on the front in gold
Love will come when I'm ready
To banish despair
Forevermore
For this pain and old memories are no longer civil
So here I stand
In pure spirit
On
Freedoms
Sandy
Yellow shores
As my higher self
Prepares
To go to war
To earn some more
Golden and red medals
For my old true love
Has walked right out of my life
And joy doesn't live here
Anymore
(C)
Copyright John Duffy
Deimos /ˈdaɪmɒs is the personal god of dread and terror in Greek mythology
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