The beauty luring men aboard the ship
In time’s a wreck, unsightly and ignored.
The handsome playboy charming all aboard,
While juggling five affairs without a slip,
Succumbs to age, and cannot book a trip
Except the one across the Styx’ grim ford.
Cabana couples, bronzed on isles they’ve toured,
All yield to rest-home pallor, and the grippe.
One restless traveler turns his thought-worn brow
Away from cruise-line glitz to seek a berth
In pews that line a craft with skyward prow
That splits the blue above the tourists’ earth:
A pilgrim sets brave sails for distant shores
Aglow with mansions found in no brochures.
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
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