For Candid Carrie's Fx4, another "beach" snap from last weekend's journey. And a poem. The thing I like most about this snap is that the sky looks like it could be the ocean, churning away. Enjoy! By The Sea
I started early, took my dog, And visited the sea;
The mermaids in the basement
Came out to look at me.
And frigates in the upper floor
Extended hempen hands,
Presuming me to be a mouse
Aground, upon the sands.
But no man moved me till the tide
Went past my simple shoe,
And past my apron and my belt,
And past my bodice too,
And made as he would eat me up
As wholly as a dew
Upon a dandelion's sleeve -
And then I started too.
And he - he followed close behind;
I felt his silver heel
Upon my ankle, - then my shoes
Would overflow with pearl.
Until we met the solid town,
No man he seemed to know;
And bowing with a mighty look
At me, the sea withdrew.
Emily Dickinson
I started early, took my dog, And visited the sea;
The mermaids in the basement
Came out to look at me.
And frigates in the upper floor
Extended hempen hands,
Presuming me to be a mouse
Aground, upon the sands.
But no man moved me till the tide
Went past my simple shoe,
And past my apron and my belt,
And past my bodice too,
And made as he would eat me up
As wholly as a dew
Upon a dandelion's sleeve -
And then I started too.
And he - he followed close behind;
I felt his silver heel
Upon my ankle, - then my shoes
Would overflow with pearl.
Until we met the solid town,
No man he seemed to know;
And bowing with a mighty look
At me, the sea withdrew.
Emily Dickinson
6 comments:
I love Emily Dickinson and I think you captured the essence in that picture! Awesome post:-)
This is a beautiful poem... and as much as I love literature, poetry is not one of my favs. BUT, this one is beautiful.. thank you!
Great picture! I wish I lived near the ocean!!!
Mrs. S, I'll be honest, I started to read the poem (which, though I've read plenty of ED, I hadn't seen before), and I couldn't get past the first line. Not because it was bad, quite the contrary, because it was so brilliant.
"I started early, and took my dog..." is the sort of elegant simplicity that makes me want to shout with happiness. I want to take to my suburban rooftop and declare, "A 19th-century poet realized that the 'mundane' detail of taking a dog to the beach is deeply, wonderfully poetic!" It reminds me of W.H. Auden's observation that any marriage is infinitely more interesting than any affair. When I read Dickinson, I have to remind myself that I'm not reading a contemporary, and that's one of the highest compliments I can give a writer.
I'll try to read the rest of the poem later, but even just that first line is enough to make me disappear with my own poetry notebook for hours.
What do you think of John Berryman?
Great poem and GORGEOUS picture!! =)
Love Emily Dickinson and the picture. Makes me wish I were near a beach!
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