Classic Poem

Proudest pearl of the wide world,
Haughtier than an Inca's plume,
You and I, near this Biloxi,
Long were laid in a shell tomb.
There we slept like white blind kittens
Curled in a warm kitchen box,
While the friendly fist of the sea
On our roof made humorous knocks
Without breaking the shell box.

Grandest pearl of the whole world,
And so vain you are twice dear,
Kin to dragon flies and dragons,
Kin to larks and kin to larkspurs,
Kin to gold and white snapdragons
And hot bees that drink such flagons
You grew whiter year by year,
You grew slender, like a dawn ray
To the plume, and flower, and torch I find you here.

Plume, upon the sunrise crest,
Pride of the beach, and set apart,
Hearing me, if not concurring—
Do we not have one horizon?
Is there not a secret stirring,
Yes, a deep-sea-kitten purring,
Then the slow thump of the ocean,
Deep in your heart, and my heart?

Oh, your heart is sky and ocean!
Each fond heart a world-wide heart . . .
To a new religion set apart . . .
Set apart,