Poems (Cromwell)/By the Sea

For works with similar titles, see By the Sea.
​
BY THE SEA
O Friend, we meet and feel as freeAs two young children. By the seaWe sift the sand. From where we sitThe line of shore seems infinite.The landward little dunes that lieIn drifted shapes against the sky,Divide and sever and secludeUs from the scenes that could intrudeUpon our chosen time of pleasure:In the ocean's louder measure,Speech is tempered and we dareTo voice perplexities the airTransmutes to clearer truth for us.Our love is new and venturous,Permits veiled intervals and termsOf silence; in each pause affirmsImplicit sympathies. Our wordsTake wing, float seaward, like the birdsUpon the wind. The birds and loveAre free to soar to climes above........But there are white waves tethered underWanton wings. Are those, I wonder,Like our thoughts,—less fugitive, ​Less free than love is,—tentative And groping, lest they touch and stir, On memories' mystic barrier, An unforgotten pain? Are we Then fettered, we who feel so free? We sift the sand. From where we sit The line of shore seems infinite. But waves into their tidal fold Obedient fall. Unto what mould Of wonted pain must you comply? O tell me, are you bound as I With links of your own failure? Tell Me, do the crowded years compelAnd hinder you? What tyranny Distorted life, like an oak tree The wind has twisted? Long ago Youth was rebellious. Now we know Our thought is tethered like a wave, And strong compelling tides enslaveOur spirits. No, we are not free. And still we almost seem to be—For since we newly love, our words Take wing, float seaward like the birds.
This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.