40. When the Wind Is Low by Cale Young Rice. Rittenhouse, Jessie B., ed. 1917. The Little Book of Modern Verse

Jessie B. Rittenhouse, ed. (1869–1948). The Little Book of Modern Verse. 1917.

40. When the Wind Is Low

By Cale Young Rice


WHEN the wind is low, and the sea is soft,
And the far heat-lightning plays
On the rim of the west where dark clouds nest
On a darker bank of haze;
When I lean o’er the rail with you that I love	5
And gaze to my heart’s content;
I know that the heavens are there above—
But you are my firmament.

When the phosphor-stars are thrown from the bow
And the watch climbs up the shroud;	10
When the dim mast-dips as the vessel slips
Through the foam that seethes aloud;
I know that the years of our life are few,
And fain as a bird to flee,
That time is as brief as a drop of dew—	15
But you are Eternity.