Shoals O' Plastic Poem by Billy Henderson

1. We were sailing back fae Alexandria,
And the general mood enthusiastic,
That was soon tae alter as we neared Gibraltar,
We were ploughing through the shoals o' plastic.

2. It all started in the fifties, so I'm told,
And the benefits would prove fantastic,
Wi' no future notions of our fertile oceans,
As we're ploughing through the shoals o' plastic.

3. In the North Pacific, Midway Island shore,
There we came upon a scene most drastic,
Tens of thousand losses of young albatrosses,
All lay dead, their stomachs filled wi' plastic.

4. Wi' yer plastic bags, bottles, fishing nets too,
All ye men of wealth, your powers bombastic,
Plankton eaters even, sixty years o' grievin',
As we're ploughing through the shoals o' plastic.

5. Only last month when returnin' tae the Broch,
O' believe me, I'm naw bein' sarcastic,
Wi' a clogged up screw, aw the whole damned crew
Walked the mile back ower shoals o' plastic.

6. This whole problem's naw about the human race,
For marine life tae, we should be carin',
So I'm only sayin' for your greed we're payin',
Then it's fare-thee-weel ye shoals o' herrin'.