I lay me down beside the deep;
The surf in slumber sealed me.
My thoughts were piled in crumpled heaps-
No secrets from myself could keep-
I held out only hope for sleep,
And doubted it could heal me.
A sea- maid walked upon the sand
The wind about her blowing.
She promised that her art could save
Me from myself. The words she gave
Throbbed like sea- winds in a cave.
I drank a potion from her hand
And slept beyond all knowing.
So, still beneath the sea- gray skies,
Entombed in blowing sand,
In slumber clasped, I rise in dreams
And walk the ocean's tidal streams
While the sea- maid beside me gleams
And turns to me her sea- gray eyes;
My wrist closed in her hand.
What can I do but walk the ocean,
Held in her cold- clasping hand,
While towering clouds above my head
Shape like faces of the dead,
And words have lost all use and dread?
Silent and calm I drank her potion.
So shall I ever wake again?
I have to think about this one some more... It is old-fashioned in style, but I find it captivating... more later:)
ReplyDeleteI now notice that this poem is contradictory in sequence. The sea maid gives the protagonist a sleeping potion but by the evidence of line 2 he was already asleep. Not sure yet how to change this... my only plea is that the poem was in the form that I first jotted it down in when I emailed it to you.
ReplyDeleteI think that this is my favorite of all the poems that Charissa has posted for you.
ReplyDeleteYou could change line 2 to something like 'in hopes that sleep would find me'. That's just a suggestion, though. You are a better poet than I, so you'll probably be able to come up with a much nicer sounding line.
Good work!