A lovely shell came floating past,
Adrift, alone in the sea,
Beside a rock where, sad and downcast,
A young maid sat in reverie.
It asked: "O lovely maiden, pray,
What occupies your mind?"
"And you," she asked, "upon your way,
What is it you must find?"
The shell replied: "By ocean made
And formed within those seas,
I'm by these selfsame waves swayed,
Without knowing where I shall cease!"
The maiden answered, full of grief,
Drowning in sorrow thoughts:
"Through life I drift and find no relief,
As through the sea you're brought!
From wave to wave you go your way,
From thought to thought go I;
You rove, indolent, all the day,
And I sing as I sigh.
You follow fortune's wayward breath,
While God alone calls me on high:
You seek for life — I seek my death;
You seek the earth — I seek the sky!"