By The Side Of A Brook

On the bank of a rushing brook I sat for hours watching its course. Peered into the clear gurgling mass That cascaded down from a mountainous source Like a slithering snake, it slinks and slips It babbles downhill night and day Rolling and gliding thro plains and dales It winds its way to the wider bay. Dipping my fingers in its icy chill How my hand got repelled as from a shock In the ripples stirred by the kissing breeze I saw trees, clouds and the jutting rock- All floating in queer, fanciful shapes, Shuddering, trembling and standing still And the fishes leaving zigzag trails, Swishing and swimming in the winding rill. As I quietly watched her speedy flight With her bosom rising in mournful heaves, In my ears fell her whisperings soft Orchestrated by the rustle of quivering leaves I hardly knew the time speeding by Nor noticed the birds' homeward flight Or the Sun moving to the west end side And the Sky reddening at his sight As the brook thus continued her headlong ride To be mingled finally with the ocean wide I walked, brooding over man's relentless stride To be merged eventually with the Cosmic Guide.