His hands always reached back, my steps nowadays were a little less quick.
The kids went out the door, ran down the short hill and a few moments later were out
on the ice.Jess and Lisa, reached simultaneously to join hands. Brother and sister;
friends, partners -it was a joy to watch. The smiles, turns, skips, spins- the occasional
slips and spills.
We always locked our eyes on them, or anyone else out there. Even when they skated
in snow. Even dimming light. Because we all knew where the ropes lay.Four at least were
out there ready to be flung- in case. Once a tragic loss happened because no one had
had the foresight to consider fates. It was too tragic to ignore; two precious siblings
gone. I murmur "Please Lord never again- Amen".
The kids went out the door, ran down the short hill and a few moments later were out
on the ice.Jess and Lisa, reached simultaneously to join hands. Brother and sister;
friends, partners -it was a joy to watch. The smiles, turns, skips, spins- the occasional
slips and spills.
We always locked our eyes on them, or anyone else out there. Even when they skated
in snow. Even dimming light. Because we all knew where the ropes lay.Four at least were
out there ready to be flung- in case. Once a tragic loss happened because no one had
had the foresight to consider fates. It was too tragic to ignore; two precious siblings
gone. I murmur "Please Lord never again- Amen".
16 comments:
Oh, yes...never again. I can't imagine the pain of losing a child, and the helplessness of watching them break through the ice. A chilling write, in more ways than one.
oh gosh...its hard to think about losing someone under the ice....watching someone fall in...yikes...we used to skate a pond nearby as kids and never thought about it then but...ugh...
Oh my dear, no, so sad.
oh no, I wasn't expecting that, it's so sad that it canstill happen.
Vivid, ardent and affecting...
What twists and turns you have wrought. Well done
Hugs
SueAnn
foresight to consider fate....nice
You did this so well..yes the safety of children..I really felt it!
oh my goodness- I wasn't ready for that. Tragic and sad.
Being from California, I've never had to actually worry about this. Having said that, your poem paints a very clear and frightening picture.
Well done.
=)
Your Mag calls for a collective repeat of the prayer.
interesting and sweet; a good read and worth the time
Nicely highlighting the need for vigilance, and the opening focusses immediately on the hands.
Wow, chilling and poignant. You captured the bliss of siblings playing in the snow.....and also the constant fright of danger.
We used to skate for as long as the season would allow... we would see the cracks and actually see how much water we could get to come through!!
Sweet poem, hand holding evokes quite a sentiment in my heart when I see my older ones holding their little brother's hand.
This reminds me of my great-great uncle who rescued a friend who fell through the ice on a pond while skating...he soon after contracted TB and died...
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