Classic Poem

Am blassen Meeresstrande

On the pale strip of seashore
I sat alone, lost among fugitive thoughts.
The sun was sinking lower and threw
Glowing, red beams upon the water.
And the white, widening line of waves,
Pulled by the urging tide,
Rolled in and rumbled nearer and nearer —
A curious mingling of wailing and whistling,
Of laughing and murmuring, sighing and shouting;
And, under it all, the strange croon of the ocean.
It was as though I heard forgotten stories,
Ancient and lovely legends,
That once I had heard as a child
From our neighbor's children,
When we, in the summer evening,
On the stone-steps before the door,
Huddled together and listened
With eager hearts,
And sharp, inquisitive eyes . . .
While the growing girls
Sat at the opposite windows;
Their heads showing above the fragrant flower-pots,
Faces like roses;
Laughing and moon-illumined.