The Hospital On The Shore

The youthful swimmers come up on the beach,
Naked and fresh from the kiss of the sea,
I hear the sound of their light-hearted speech
As it is with them, it was once with me !
Oh, Death, grant me pity : just one day more,
And let me go down again to the shore.
I could have died in the rush of the air.
Mid crashing water and petulant spray.
The surf in my teeth, the wind in my hair,
Rejoicing, exultant, even as they.
But to meet Death here, . . . in this walled-in cage,
I am dumb with terror and blind with rage.
Have pity! Reprieve me! just one more ride.
White sand beneath us, white planets above,
One last long sail with the ebb of the tide.
One lilac evening of delicate love.
One lingering look at those eyes of his.
To remember through the Eternities.