Landward it streams, and countless inlets fill;
Barren itself, it spreads its barren will;
It swells and swirls, its rolling waves expand
Over the dreary waste of dismal sand;
Breaker on breaker, all their power upheaved
And then withdrawn, and not a thing achieved!
I watch dismayed, almost despairingly,
This useless elemental energy!
And so my spirit dares new wings to span:
This I would fight, and conquer if I can.
And I can conquer it!—Flood as it may,
It slinks past all that rises in its way;
For all its gushing pride, a little hill
Denies it passage, and against its will
The least concavity lures it from its course.
At once my plan was made! My soul shall boast
An exquisite achievement: from our coast
I’ll ban the lordly sea, I’ll curb its force,
I’ll set new limits to that watery plain
And drive it back into itself again.
I’ve worked out every detail, and I say:
This is my will, now dare to find a way!