Pilot climbs up Jacob’s ladder
Scales the ship, commands the rudder
Safe to port in any weather
Guide through night and day
Steers a channel cut by glaciers
Keeps a course that clears the bottom
Ably captains any vessel
Mindful of the way
First to greet the world’s seafarers
Moving trade in all directions
Up and down the busy sea lanes
Pilot plies the Bay
Every mark and every current
Etched in memory often tested
Passage true for dangerous cargo
Guardian of the Bay
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Copyright Deborah McGlauflin, August 2011. All rights reserved.
“Jacob’s Ladder” is a salute to the important work of the Chesapeake Bay pilots. I think of them out there when the wind is howling off the Bay on a dark winter night or when the fog is thick. Those like me who care about the Bay owe them a debt of gratitude for moving cargo swiftly and safely in and out of port. As the bay pilots website reminds us — if there had been a pilot on the Exxon Valdez, there probably wouldn’t have been an accident.
Because they are unsung heroes, I thought it appropriate to borrow the rhythm of a song for this poem. And because they often make the dangerous climb aboard ships that are underway as they enter the Bay using a rope ladder called a “jacob’s ladder,” I thought it especially appropriate to base it on a hymn called “Jacob’s Ladder.” It’s a song some readers might remember from Sunday School. You can actually sing this poem to that melody, if you know it.
Loved the poem as I first read it and then( after reading your comment), I sang it to the tune I learned in Sunday school years ago. It is a fine tribute to those brave men who skillfully guide their ships through our waters in whatever weather nature sends their way.
I’m happy to say there are women Bay pilots, too! True pioneers!