Memories of Sea and Shore

My thanks to Horatius Bonar (1808-89) who provided the pattern for this poem with his well known hymn, from which I kept a few of the lines as well as the basic rhyming beat. This is not an overtly religious poem, although I find the beauty of the sea and shore evokes feelings of awe and wonder.

Memories of Sea and Shore

I heard the sound of sea and spray
Coming onto rocks to rest
Crashes on the rocks, and falling down
And my heart beats in my breast
The joys of childhood so it was
Now weary, worn and sad
But I walk back to memory place
The high tide makes me glad

I heard the sound of sea and spray
And rocks that never give
As breaking waves, just one by one
Crash down, and make me live
Of memory past, so deep I drank
Of that life-giving stream
With you beside me, joys revived
As music of a hymn

I heard the sound of sea and spray
And in the dark, beams light
That from the lighthouse shall arise
And shining forth so bright
I watched at dawn, and there I found
The rising glow of sun
And now together here we’ll walk
Till travelling days are done