  Behind the veil that men call sleep I came upon a golden land. A golden light was in the leaves And on the amethystine strand. Amber and gold and emerald The unimaginable wood. And in a joy I could not name Beside the emerald stream I stood. Down from a violet hill came one Running to meet me on the shore. I clasped his hand. He seemed to be One I had long been waiting for. All the sweet sounds I ever heard In his low greeting seemed to blend. His were the eyes of my true love. His was the mouth of my true friend. We spoke; and the transfigured words Meant more than words had ever meant. Our lips at last forgot to speak, For silence was so eloquent. We floated in the emerald stream; We wandered in the wondrous wood. His soul to me was clear as light. My inmost thought he understood. Only to be was to be glad. Life, like a rainbow, filled our eyes. In comprehending comradeship Each moment seemed a Paradise. And often, in the after years, I and my dream-fellow were one For hours together in that land Behind the moon, beyond the sun. At last, in the tumultuous dream That men call life, I chanced to be One day amid the city throng Where the great piers oppose the sea. A giant ship was swinging off For other seas and other skies. Amid the voyaging companies I saw his face, I saw his eyes. Oh, passionately through the crowd I thrust, and then—our glances met! Across the widening gulf we gazed, With white set lips, and eyes grown wet. And all day long my heart was faint With parting pangs and tears unwept; Till night brought comfort, for he came To meet me, smiling, when I slept. Beyond the veil that men call sleep We met, within that golden land. He said—or I—“We grieved to-day. But now, more wise, we understand! “Communing in the common world, The flesh, for us, would be a bar. Strange would be our familiar speech; And earth would seem no more a star. “We’d know no more the golden leaves Beside the amethystine deep; We’d see no more each other’s thought |
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