And we a solitary pair like them. 255
They should not have departed; many days
Did I look forth in vain, nor on the wing
Could see them, nor in that small open space
Of blue unfrozen water, where they lodged,
And lived so long in quiet, side by side. 260
Shall we behold them, consecrated friends,
Faithful companions, yet another year
Surviving—they for us, and we for them—
And neither pair be broken? Nay perchance