On this Wonderous sea, defines the difference between life and death by breaking life down to a journey. It is the most optimistic of the entire poem as it celebrates the joys of living a full life only to settle into eternity, instead of dwelling on an incomplete life and having to suffer a lifetime of regret and dormancy.
On wonderous sea begins by describing a peaceful journey.

“Sailing Silently
Knowest thou the shore
Ho! Pilot, ho!
Where no breakers roar”

The sailor is looking to his end destination (the shore) with envy. He waits with anticipation to get to a place where no breakers roar. Yet as the poem continues he cannot be sure if such a place exists questioning whether or not the end of his journey will bring a place  “ where the storm is o’er”. In the end of the poem the pilot embraces the conclusion of his voyage, he is happy to let it come to an end exclaiming that
Land ho! Eternity
Ashore at last

The change in tone of this poem from the others is interesting. Why is it that this poem embraces eternity while the others view it as a curse?  The change is due to the fact that on this wonderous sea embraces life and the journey that comes with it. I could not stop for death, life is treated as a slow journey to death, while I wish I knew that woman’s name cannot remember her life enough to tell the difference between her living self and her deceased self. Even the title is a celebration of life, and the journey.  The use of exclamation points adds to the sense of happiness and excitement. There is nothing passive about the sailor in the poem; he has lived a rewarding life as shown by his willingness to express emotion and his ability to embrace eternity.