A Passing Ship

A passing ship

I have found the open ocean

Give me no lip

The waves roll by as I pass on

A sunlit sea

On the first day of April

How fresh the wind

Will you miss me when I'm gone?

How many words

How many songs still unwritten?

How many ships

Of the line have come and gone?

In the good old days

May they never be forgotten

They had heavy wind

Or they had no wind at all

A passing ship

It is midnight on the ocean

Had a real long trip

I have been at sea all winter

When my ship came in

I was givin' up the ghost

I think I should be

Leavin' those passing ships alone

When the sea runs high

The sea runs wild and I'm unsteady

And I think of you

In the warmth of your home and family

When love is true

There is no truer occupation

And may this gale

Blow us to the ones we love

Another day, another ocean

Give me no lip

But stand aside as I pass on

A sunlit sea

On the last day in October

How fresh the wind

Will you miss me from now on?

I guess I should be

Leavin' passing ships alone