Dreary upon the beach, You lie with shattered dignity, resigned To endless waiting for an endless nothing, Calm in your memories, and content to bleach In the pleasant warmth of sun; to find Repose on patient sands; you are the clothing Of what might have been, Had one more greedy wave Foregone its passioned lust ever to win; Had one more seething tempest ceased to blow; But you, I know, Are happy now in your uncovered grave. Passing ships at night, Lighted with silence and with mystery, You have seen vanish; heard the plaintive cry Of landbirds lost at sea, sobbing their plight; And thought the awful thought that you were free! And in that knowledge, longed to occupy Again the home you loved, Though you were restless in its quietude Until you left it; now that you have roved, You rest, and past the curse and bliss of mood, You sleep upon the sand. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...AT DOVER CLIFFS, JULY 20, 1787 by WILLIAM LISLE BOWLES A DAY DREAM by EMILY JANE BRONTE PICTURES FROM APPLEDORE: 2 by JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL SPOON RIVER ANTHOLOGY: ANNE RUTLEDGE by EDGAR LEE MASTERS ODE TO THE MAGUIRE by EOCHADH O'HUSSEY A REASONABLE AFFLICTION (1) by MATTHEW PRIOR STORY OF THE GATE by HARRISON ROBERTSON |