The Figurehead
Argelia Frizzell
Once there was a figurehead at the bow of a ship.
A spectral sea nymph, dark of hair and pink of lip.
Though carved from elm and formed from mortal mind,
It was she, who Triton calmed his waves for, and Boreas bind.
And though she loved the sea and all its maritime treasures,
There was a fair and handsome sailor she adored beyond measure.
From wood and string he drew forth sweet and haunting melodies,
That struck her heart Oh! Those sweet and haunting elegies.
“I have travelled the ocean and I have loved the sea,
But gladly would I leave this all to be with thee!
Young and free I’ve enjoyed immortal life
But happily I’d give it up to be your wife!”
Enraged that the maid preferred a mortal man,
Triton’s father, Poseidon, devised an evil plan.
Arms cast out, he bid the ocean to rage and quake,
And slipping from the ship, the sailor’s life he did take.
Into the tempest, the figurehead cried out in vain,
Tears running down her face from the pelting rain.
And who should be moved most by her pitiful cries,
Than Triton himself who’s heart remorse did arise.
“I have traveled the ocean and I have loved the sea,
But heart has known no love greater then when it saw thee.
Gladly would I have given you more than immortal life,
But now I plead with Aphrodite to help rectify your strife.”
And placing his conch between his quivering lips,
He summoned a gale that rocked and shook the ship.
The figurehead came undone and plummeted into the sea
And with tears streaming, he bid farewell to the love he set free.
And though for the sea prince love remained unrequited,
He kept for eternity a recompense for the sacrifice he provided.
For the moment the figurehead touched the sea,
A mortal life Aphrodite had mercifully offered she.
And while the ocean buried her, her name lost to time,
Immortal in his heart she remains, a sweet song of rhyme.
Argelia Frizzell
Argelia León Frizzell’s love of literature blossomed when she smuggled a book to a high school beach party—much to her older brother’s chagrin. Regardless of being labeled a nerd for the rest of her tenure at high school, she’s an avid reader and writer. She lives in Anaheim with her husband, children and a spirited toasted-marshmallow colored dog named Darla. She’s had several of her poems and short stories published in a university anthology and now finds time to write when she’s not exploring the woods with her children or being a couch movie critic with her husband.