I am the captain and I have been told
That tomorrow we land and my ship has been sold
Now losing this boat is worth scarce a mention
I think of the crew, most of all the first ensign
For all we learned the sea
Guiding a ship, it takes more than your skill
It's the compass inside it's the strength of your will
The first ensign watched as tempests all tried me
I sang in the wind as if God were beside me
For all we learned the sea
You take the wheel one more time like I showed you
We've reached the strait once even I could not go through
I am the captain and I have been told
But I am not shaken, I am eight years old
And you are still young, but you'll understand
That the stars of the sea are the same for the land
And we came to learn the sea
That tomorrow we land and my ship has been sold
Now losing this boat is worth scarce a mention
I think of the crew, most of all the first ensign
For all we learned the sea
Guiding a ship, it takes more than your skill
It's the compass inside it's the strength of your will
The first ensign watched as tempests all tried me
I sang in the wind as if God were beside me
For all we learned the sea
You take the wheel one more time like I showed you
We've reached the strait once even I could not go through
I am the captain and I have been told
But I am not shaken, I am eight years old
And you are still young, but you'll understand
That the stars of the sea are the same for the land
And we came to learn the sea
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I am the captain and I have been told
I am tha owner of this body (this ship) and they have told me.
That tomorrow we land and my ship has been sold
Tomorrow I am going to die.
Now losing this boat is worth scarce a mention
I am not afriad.
I think of the crew, most of all the first ensign
I think mostly of my children.
For all we learned the sea
For we learned to live, we learned life.
Guiding a ship, it takes more than your skill
Being a mother is more than just a skill.
It's the compass inside it's the strength of your will
It's about strength too, it's about love.
The first ensign watched as tempests all tried me
My children watched as I died.
I sang in the wind as if God were beside me
I was as strong as I could possibly be.
For all we learned the sea
For we learned to live, we learned life.
You take the wheel one more time like I showed you
You need to learn to live on your own, just like I taught you too all of these years.
We've reached the strait once even I could not go through
I can't follow you any more. I can't guide you any more.
I am the captain and I have been told
I am the owner of this body, and they told me that I am going to die.
But I am not shaken, I am eight years old
I am just as strong as ever, I am an old soul.
And you are still young, but you'll understand
You are all so new to this world, but I know you are good and smart.
That the stars of the sea are the same for the land
You will grow to know that life is just as beautiful when I am not here. Death does not define you.
And we came to learn the sea
We learned to live. We learned life.
On The Green World, “We Learn the Sea” renews Williams’ interest in the challenges of growing up.
“I was just really struck by the relationship between siblings, especially the way that older siblings take on the role of coloring the world for their younger brothers and sisters,” she said of the song, which appears to be about a sea captain, who turns out to be 8 years old.
“I had a friend, for example, who kept reassuring her little sister that her parents wouldn’t get divorced, when she kept hearing them fighting and was terrified herself that they would. She took on the responsibility of mediating reality, in a way that’s unusual for kids but you do see it.”