Nantucket's Sound
by Michael Doyle

In the depths that feel formidable
Is the key to knowing the unknowable.
There was an urgency for resources on demand
From the ocean floor up to supply the land.

Petroleum, minerals, and whale oil,
Have all had their turn as the capitalist foil
Pushing mankind further into the sea,
And unleashing all kinds of mystery.

The unknown is a land of imagination.
It tantalizes mankind with fascination.
As we push further in anticipation,
Believing it will bring our greatest emancipation.

How do we begin to know the unknown?
The mind of man responds to clues thrown.
Explored by a metaphor of great white whales.
These and other fantastical tales.

Some such tales frighten those who were there.
It becomes unspeakable, this driving fear.
These are torments in need of confession.
But they become hidden like a secret obsession.

The unknown is a land of imagination.
It tantalizes mankind with fascination.
As we push further in anticipation,
Believing it will bring our greatest emancipation.

To speak only as much as necessary,
We dance around the edges of the legendary.
Some tales become the tales told by lesser men,
And still humanity fights its way through our sins.

The Essex set out to sea to seek a whaler's profit,
But the truth of it didn't need a prophet.
To know that a liar's word is worthless,
And that feigned promises are meritless.

The unknown is a land of imagination.
It tantalizes mankind with fascination.
As we push further in anticipation,
Believing it will bring our greatest emancipation.

Life is full of stories and comprises.
The promises made aren't meant to be lies.
But in a world of broken alibis,
Cheap suits come down to tattered neck ties.

Sometimes all a man knows is what he knows,
And some only know the sea and how the wind blows.
We do our best to live up to family names,
Knowing we have but little beyond our family's fame.

The unknown is a land of imagination.
It tantalizes mankind with fascination.
As we push further in anticipation,
Believing it will bring our greatest emancipation.

A voyage begins with conception's prayer,
Knowing only what can be known as if it is a snare.
Nantucket sought to be a nation's healing light,
Scared enough to seek to show it in the night.

Harpoons and whaling pins  tell the story
Of whaling crews setting sail for particular glory.
An experienced crew knows who will belong.
They equally foresee what can or could go wrong.

(c) January 28, 2026   Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved