The Sea-Child Poem by Eliza Cook

The Sea-Child

Rating: 3.0


HE crawls to the cliff and plays on a brink
Where every eye but his own would shrink;
No music he hears but the billow’s noise,
And shells and weeds are his only toys.
No lullaby can the mother find
To sing him to rest like the moaning wind;
And the louder it wails and the fiercer it sweeps,
The deeper he breathes and the sounder he sleeps.

And now his wandering feet can reach
The rugged tracks of the desolate beach;
Creeping about like a Triton imp,
To find the haunts of the crab and shrimp.
He clings, with none to guide or help,
To the furthest ridge of slippery kelp;
And his bold heart glows while he stands and mocks
The seamew’s cry on the jutting rocks.

Few years have wan’d—and now he stands
Bareheaded on the shelving sands.
A boat is moor’d, but his young hands cope
Right well with the twisted cable rope;
He frees the craft, she kisses the tide;
The boy has climb’d her beaten side:
She drifts—she floats—he shouts with glee;
His soul hath claim’d its right on the sea.

’T is vain to tell him the howling breath
Rides over the waters with wreck and death:
He ’ll say there ’s more of fear and pain
On the plague-ridden earth than the storm-lash’d main.
’T would be as wise to spend thy power
In trying to lure the bee from the flower,
The lark from the sky, or the worm from the grave,
As in weaning the Sea-Child from the wave.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Practicing Poetess 15 December 2019

I absolutely loved this one. Beautifully and descriptively written! A fitting choice for POD.

3 0 Reply
Edward Kofi Louis 15 December 2019

Billow's noise! ! ! ! And now his wandering feet can reach. Thanks for sharing this poem with us.

1 0 Reply
Ananiya Alick Ponje 19 November 2008

It is really a very good poem. It reminds me of the past when I used to live far away from home. Continue writing. May you please comment on my poems as well.

1 0 Reply
Kingsley Egbukole 15 December 2019

Interesting poem. Well articulated.

1 0 Reply
Uche Nwanze 15 December 2019

A beauty, a masterpiece, brilliance.

1 0 Reply
Andrew Blakemore 15 December 2019

Love the imagery in this poem

1 0 Reply
Harley White 15 December 2019

Lovely poem, well crafter...

1 0 Reply
Sylvia Frances Chan 15 December 2019

Such a sweetest poem, and so detailed about a sea-child.. An excellent choice for the Classic Poem Of The Day. Hurray! I truoy enjoyed the poem. Mesmerizing, worth to be read time and again. CONGRATULATIONS!

1 0 Reply
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Eliza Cook

Eliza Cook

London Road / Southwark / England
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