A Classic

TO THE UNATTAINABLE

translated into English by: Laurence Hope (1865-1904)

OH, that my blood were water, thou athirst,
And thou and I in some far Desert land,
How would I shed it gladly, if but first
It touched thy lips, before it reached the sand.


Once, -- Ah, the Gods were good to me, -- I threw
Myself upon a poison snake, that crept
Where my Beloved -- a lesser love we knew
Than this which now consumes me wholly -- slept.


But thou; Alas, what can I do for thee?
By Fate, and thine own beauty, set above
The need of all or any aid from me,
Too high for service, as too far for love.