| Commentary and Philosophy Poetry
posted March 10, 2021 |
Chapters: |
...7 8 -9- 10... 
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Howland comes to America on the Mayflower
A chapter in the book Poems from a Pensive Poet
The Ballad of John Howland
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There was a group of Godly souls
who left their homes behind.
“No country tells us how to pray.
Another land we’ll find.”
These pilgrims were called Separatist.
“We won’t obey the king!”
Into the Netherlands, they fled.
From there, their praise to sing.
But Holland didn’t satisfy
their need for farming land.
America was very new.
They felt led by God’s hand.
Two ships would sail across the sea
to this new untouched shore.
The Speedwell failed the safety test.
One ship would make it o’er.
One hundred two would crowd aboard
this ship to Plymouth Rock.
The Mayflower rode the stormy sea,
while God watched o’er his flock.
John Howland was washed overboard,
when waves assailed the ship.
A topsail trailing saved his life.
He held on with firm grip.
Two months they’d fought the stormy seas,
when they debarked at last.
November winds were bitter cold;
for some, the die was cast.
By summer, less half remained.
The Tilley family died.
The Carvers took their daughter in.
John got to know his bride.
John served the Carvers as a clerk
The second year, they passed.
A freeman, Howland then became.
He owned some land at last.
Howland and Tilley soon were wed
With 'Lizabeth his bride.
Ten offspring to this union came.
The family tree grew wide.
The estimate’s ten million souls,
now in this nation thrive,
Because John didn’t die at sea,
that’s why I am alive.
You too may be one of that group
who’s in his family tree.
God made a nation out of him--
a nation that’s still free.
********
King James VI of Scotland decreed the Church of England was where everyone would worship. Many believed that government has no place in deciding one's faith. Defying the king became dangerous for the Separatists. They fled to the Netherlands. After about ten years, it appeared even Holland was becoming less tolerant. John Carver got a group together to travel to the New World. John Howland, a cousin, went along as one of several indentured servants and served him as his clerk. The original ship, the Speedwell
that brought the Pilgrims from Holland, was a sister ship to the Mayflower, but it was unable to make the journey because it was taking on water. Everyone had to crowd into the Mayflower's already cramped quarters. Half of the 102 passengers and crew on the Mayflower didn't survive the first year of harsh winter in New England.
If one of the many people from whom you inherited DNA had not lived, would you still exist as the same person you are today? Just a thought.
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Rhyming Poetry Contest contest entry
Doing ancestry chart, I discovered that one of my ancestors was on the Mayflower. Howland is estimated to be the forefather of ten million who live in the US today. He was a Pilgrim and indentured servant to John Carver. After Carver and his wife died, John inherited his land and became the ward of Elizabeth Tilley whom the Carvers had taken in after her parents died. He and Elizabeth were married and had 10 children.
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