FRIEND OR FOE?

FRIEND OR FOE

"Friend or foe?" they asked of him
As he entered from the fog
But he spoke not a word---
He removed his sou'wester
Lit his pipe and puffed away
Still quiet as a bird.

"The fog can be a problem
Or it can be God sent"
He said to all who'd listen---
The old stove burped loudly
As the men gathered 'round it
Their sweating faces, glistened.

He said that fog was God's way
To slow us down awhile
And allow us to reflect---
"When it rolls inland towards mornin'
Boats stay in and men stay home
Better that than chance a wreck."

He told them that his own late wife
Always prayed for fog
So that with her he'd linger---
"And now she's gone, I've all the time
To sit at home and miss her."
Then he turned the ring on his finger.

The men all sighed in silence
As they smoked and hugged the stove
The old man got up to leave---
And one by one the younger ones
Went home to see their wives
Before heading out to sea.

The fog is here forever, folks
And teaches one and all
To accept what can't be changed---
And then one day the sun will shine
And clouds will chase the fog away
Because God has it all pre-arranged.