Choice (Henry's Island 2) Poem by Pradip Chattopadhyay

The ebbing sea had retreated when I reached the beach
She was afar though the sandbar lured me to reach
I had no choice but to cross the lagoon
Half-merged in water wading in the rippled moon.
What delight it was when I was on the other side
Behind me the channel before me the silvery wide
Above me wispily spread an ethereal band
I stood on the cushion of softly sparkling sand.
I could joyfully die holding them in my eyes
More I couldn’t take more I couldn’t surmise
The agonizing beauty was an unbearable sight
There seemed nothing more to live for beyond that night.
In turning back I knew would be no rejoice
But I had to retrace I had no other choice
Afar waited faces in the waning moon’s shadow
My feet were heavy in the return tide’s flow.