A Sense of History: Straight Road
The next in a series of articles about ships passing to and from the West, Simon uses "The Fall of Númenor" to attempt to arrive at Tolkien's reading of the exordium to "Beowulf."
Never shall I see the place,
Where Enel woke and Enelyë roamed,
Where Elves dwelt free,
And doom was death not Valinor.
Never shall I see the place,
Where Denethor walked,
And became a King,
Only to be slain.
Never shall I see the place,
Where Lenwë turned from his path,
Nor where he settled with his people,
On the shores of the Anduin.
Never shall I see the place,
Where Elu dwelt in a thousand caves,
And Lúthien sang to nightingales,
In the shadows of the trees.
Never shall I see the place,
Where my ancestors lived and died,
Never shall I see the place,
Where I would choose to live,
But instead live here,
In a land I cannot leave.