Parerga/By the Side of the Sounding Sea
< Parerga
BY THE SIDE OF THE SOUNDING SEA.
Air—VALETTA'S.
I.
By the side of the sounding sea,
Which the shrill blasts of Autumn waken,
Alone I wander, far from thee,
The spot where first we met, forsaken.
And its flowrets have lost their hue;
No more for me thy hand will wreathe them,
And bid me think how fond and true
We watch'd their growth, and love grew with them.
But here though nought around below
Of her I loved and left remind me,
The same bright Heaven on both will glow,
And heart to heart to thee still bind me.
By the side of the sounding sea,
Which the shrill blasts of Autumn waken,
Alone I wander, far from thee,
The spot where first we met, forsaken.
And its flowrets have lost their hue;
No more for me thy hand will wreathe them,
And bid me think how fond and true
We watch'd their growth, and love grew with them.
But here though nought around below
Of her I loved and left remind me,
The same bright Heaven on both will glow,
And heart to heart to thee still bind me.
II.
'Tis when star is array'd with star,
And when the moon unveils her splendour,
We both may watch, though parted far,
Together for that orb so tender.
At the noon of the night, my brow
To hail her gentle light when raising,
I know that thou wilt keep thy vow,
And on that light wilt then be gazing.
No longer while we look above,
In absence shall we sigh dejected;
For our hearts will read each other's love
In the smile of the soft sweet moon reflected.
'Tis when star is array'd with star,
And when the moon unveils her splendour,
We both may watch, though parted far,
Together for that orb so tender.
At the noon of the night, my brow
To hail her gentle light when raising,
I know that thou wilt keep thy vow,
And on that light wilt then be gazing.
No longer while we look above,
In absence shall we sigh dejected;
For our hearts will read each other's love
In the smile of the soft sweet moon reflected.