THE  RESCUE 

My lover is fishing with bob and quill. 
(I sit watching under the willow.) 

Boys play naked in the pool: 
(An old horse stands beneath the oak:) 

their clothes are lying on the bank: 
( . . . whisking his tail and kicking the ground:) 

and some splash to their knees or waists. 
( . . . kicking the ground and whisking the flies.) 

Others, more daring, dive in deep water. 
(Sheep are gathered in the shade.) 

An older boy swims by the floodgate. 
(The sheepdog’s tongue hangs red and wet.) 

O! . . . a younger boy is gripped with cramp! 
(The sheep-dog pants and dribbles with heat.) 

My lover is fishing with bob and quill. 
(I stand watching under the willow.) 

My lover dives in to help the boy. 
(And I bend down and pat the dog.)
 

                              (1945)