Part 7
Next day we went to Grand Haven, For my desire was your desire, Whatever wish one had the other had. And up the Grand River we rowed, With rushes and lily pads about us, And the sand hills back of us, Till we came to a quiet land, A lotus place of farms and meadows. And we tied our boat to Schmitty's dock, Where we had a dinner of fish. And where, after resting, to follow your will We drifted back to Spring Lake-- And under a larger moon, Now almost full, Walked three miles to The Beeches, By a winding country road, Where we had supper. And afterwards a long sleep, Waking to the song of robins.
And that day I said: There are wild places, blue water, pine forests, There are apple orchards, and wonderful roads Around Elk Lake--shall we go? And we went, for your desire was mine. And there we climbed hills, And ate apples along the shaded ways, And rolled great boulders down the steeps To watch them splash in the water. And we stood and wondered what was beyond The farther shore two miles away. And we came to a place on the shore Where four great pine trees stood, And underneath them wild flowers to the edge Of sand so soft for naked feet. And here, for not a soul was near, We stripped and swam far out, laughing, rejoicing, Rolling and diving in those great depths Of bracing water under a glittering sun.
There were farm houses enough For food and shelter. But something urged us on. One knows the end and dreads the end Yet seeks the end. And you asked, "Is there a town near? Let's see a town." So we walked to Traverse City Through cut-over land and blasted Trunks and stumps of pine, And by the side of desolate hills. But when we got to Traverse City You were not content, nor was I. Something urged us on. Then you thought of Northport And of its Norse and German fishermen, And its quaint piers where they smoke fish. So we drove for thirty miles In a speeding automobile Over hills, around sudden curves, into warm coverts, Or hollows, sometimes at the edge of the Bay, Again on the hill, From where we could see Old Mission Amid blues and blacks, across a score of miles of the Bay, Waving like watered silk under the moon! And by meadows of clover newly cut, And by peach orchards and vineyards. But when we came to the little town Already asleep, though it was but eight o'clock, And only a few drowsy lamps With misty eyelids shone from a store or two, I said, "Do you see those twinkling lights? That's Northport Point, that's the Cedar Cabin-- Let's go to the Cedar Cabin." And so we crossed the Bay Amid great waves in a plunging launch, And a roaring breeze and a great moon, For now the moon was full.
So here was the Cedar Cabin On a strip of land as wide as a house and lawn, And on one side Lake Michigan, And on one side the Bay. There were distances of color all around, And stars and darknesses of land and trees, And at the point the lighthouse. And over us the moon, And over the balcony of our room All of these, where we lay till I slept, Listening to the water of the lake, And the water of the Bay. And we saw the moon sink like a red bomb, And we saw the stars change As the sky wheeled.... Now this was the end of the earth, For this strip of land Ran out to a point no larger than one of the stumps We saw on the desolate hills. And moreover it seemed to dive under, Or waste away in a sudden depth of water. And around it was a swirl, To the north the bounding waves of the Lake, And to the south the Bay which seemed the Lake. But could we speak of it, even though I saw your eyes when you thought of it? A sigh of wind blew through the rustic temple When we saw this symbol together, And neither spoke. But that night, somewhere in the beginning of drowsiness, You said: "There is no further place to go, We must retrace." And I awoke in a torrent of light in the room, Hearing voices and steps on the walk: I looked for you, But you had arisen. Then I dressed and searched for you, But you were gone. Then I stood for long minutes Looking at a sail far out at sea And departed too.
THE STAR
I am a certain god Who slipped down from a remote height To a place of pools and stars. And I sat invisible Amid a clump of trees To watch the madmen.
There were cries and groans about me, And shouts of laughter and curses. Figures passed by with self-absorbed contempt, Wrinkling in bitter smiles about their lips. Others hurried on with set eyes Pursuing something. Then I said this is the place for mad Frederick-- Mad Frederick will be here.
But everywhere I could see Figures sitting or standing By little pools. Some seemed grown into the soil And were helpless. And of these some were asleep. Others laughed the laughter That comes from dying men Trying to face Death. And others said "I should be content," And others said "I will fly." Whereupon sepulchral voices muttered, As of creatures sitting or hanging head down From limbs of the trees, "We will not let you." And others looked in their pools And clasped hands and said "Gone, all gone." By other pools there were dead bodies: Some of youth, some of age. They had given up the fight, They had drunk poisoned water, They had searched Until they fell-- All had gone mad!
Then I, a certain god, Curious to know What it is in pools and stars That drives men and women Over the earth in this quest Waited for mad Frederick. And then I heard his step.
I knew that long ago He sat by one of these pools Enraptured of a star's image. And that hands, for his own good, As they said, Dumped clay into the pool And blotted his star. And I knew that after that He had said, "They will never spy again Upon my ecstasy. They will never see me watching one star. I will fly by rivers, And by little brooks, And by the edge of lakes, And by little bends of water, Where no wind blows, And glance at stars as I pass. They will never spy again Upon my ecstasy."
And I knew that mad Frederick In this flight Through years of restless and madness Was caught by the image of a star In a mere beyond a meadow Down from a hill, under a forest, And had said, "No one sees; Here I can find life, Through vision of eternal things." But they had followed him. They stood on the brow of the hill, And when they saw him gazing in the water They rolled a great stone down the hill, And shattered the star's image. Then mad Frederick fled with laughter. It echoed through the wood. And he said, "I will look for moons, I will punish them who disturb me, By worshiping moons." But when he sought moons They left him alone, And he did not want the moons. And he was alone, and sick from the moons, And covered as with a white blankness, Which was the worst madness of all.
And I, a certain god, Waiting for mad Frederick To enter this place of pools and stars, Saw him at last. With a sigh he looked about upon his fellows Sitting or standing by their pools. And some of the pools were covered with scum, And some were glazed as of filth, And some were grown with weeds, And some were congealed as of the north wind, And a few were yet pure, And held the star's image. And by these some sat and were glad, Others had lost the vision. The star was there, but its meaning vanished. And mad Frederick, going here and there, With no purpose, Only curious and interested As I was, a certain god, Came by a certain pool And saw a star.
He shivered, He clasped his hands, He sank to his knees, He touched his lips to the water.
Then voices from the limbs of the trees muttered: "There he is again." "He must be driven away." "The pool is not his." "He does not belong here." So as when bats fly in a cave They swooped from their hidings in the trees And dashed themselves in the pool. Then I saw what these flying things were-- But no matter. They were illusions, evil and envious And dull, But with power to destroy. And mad Frederick turned away from the pool And covered his eyes with his arms. Then a certain god, Of less power than mine, Came and sat beside me and said: "Why do you allow this to be? They are all seeking, Why do you not let them find their heart's delight? Why do you allow this to be?" But I did not answer. The lesser god did not know That I have no power, That only the God has the power. And that this must be In spite of all lesser gods.
And I saw mad Frederick Arise and ascend to the top of a high hill, And I saw him find the star Whose image he had seen in the pool. Then he knelt and prayed: "Give me to understand, O Star, Your inner self, your eternal spirit, That I may have you and not images of you, So that I may know what has driven me through the world, And may cure my soul. For I know you are Eternal Love, And I can never escape you. And if I cannot escape you, Then I must serve you. And if I must serve you, It must be to good and not ill-- You have brought me from the forest of pools And the images of stars, Here to the hill's top. Where now do I go? And what shall I do?"
THE END
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Transcriber's Notes:
Passages in italics are indicated by _italics_.
Punctuation has been corrected without note.
Inconsistencies in spelling and hyphenation have been retained from the original.
It is not always possible to determine if a new stanza begins at the top of a printed page, but every effort has been made by the transcriber to retain stanza breaks where appropriate.