Crossing the Interpretation

"Sunset and evening star,/ And one clear call for me!"

I skimmed "Crossing the Bar" quickly, the way I usually read poems for the first time. Before I went to read the questions that usually give away the meaning of the poem, I stopped to formulate my own cursory interpretation. What I came up with was an analogy between the horizon and death. I assumed the "bar" that was frequently mentioned was the horizon that is the the line -or bar- that can be seen where the sky meets the sea. The "call" the "farewell" of the poem was what I considered death. The crossing of the bar was the when the character passed over the horizon from death to life.

As I moved on to read the questions, I realized my interpretation was far more complicated than the actual meaning. The bar is literally the sandbar (a place where the sand at the bottom rises up, making it very shallow and dangerous for crossing ships) in an ocean. The only part I got right the first time was the death part. The author wants to die by drowning, or at least expects to. He will answer the call and return to his Pilot (God) with his death. My first attempt may have crossed the line, but it was eventually corrected upon further study of "Crossing the Bar".