It stole my breath.

Upon an isle, where sunbeams kissed the spray,
My childhood bloomed, the ocean and the bay
Were my whole world, a symphony of blue,
Where nature's canvas, ever fresh and new,
Drawn in my heart, with pigments bright and bold,
A thousand tales the water's voice unrolled.

With easel set, and brush in eager hand,
I'd capture dawn across the shifting sand.
And then, the boat, my vessel, swift and free,
Would cut the waves, a joyous part of me.
A quiet peace, a solace deep and true,
Abided there, beneath the sky's vast hue.

The salty air, a balm on every breath,
The water's edge, warding off all death,
Or so it seemed, in youth's untroubled gaze,
Lost in the rhythm of those sun-drenched days.
To be so near, to glide upon its breast,
That was my joy, my spirit's sweet unrest.

And now I yearn, with a profoundest sigh,
For that lost world, beneath a summer sky.
The gentle lapping, or the ocean's roar,
The endless beauty, I can reach no more.
This void remains, a hunger sharp and deep,
For all the peace the waters used to keep.

Yet in this ache, a truth I can't deny,
The very life that made my spirit fly,
The boundless freedom, and the calm I knew,
The water's kiss, so tender and so true…
It was the same, with an embrace so tight,
That stole my breath, and turned my day to night.