PostPoems Be Artistic. Be Creative. Be Inspired!

We were swimming off the cliffside beach

When the storm darkened the sky

Made the sea as black as night

I was confused, in the way that one will be

When danger suddenly rears from nowhere

And you must act

Or be killed

I was knee deep in the water

I rushed for you

Screaming your name,

Waving my arm, go back! go back!

You turned, thank god, you understood

And charged through the water

That splashed black and cold against your thighs

I took no thought for the water around mine

Be safe, be safe, be safe, I prayed

Let him be safe

And the first flash of lightning

The first blast of icy wind

And the first crack of thunder

And then the black water at my thighs pulled back

Threatened to topple me with its racing force

I steadied myself against it, wheeling

And looked over my shoulder

A black mountain of water rose at the horizon,

High as the stormy sky

A seam of white seawater broke on its crest

And it raced

The water still rushing around me,

Trying to draw me out to sea, to the black mountain

I turned to face it, braced against the rushing black river at my ankles, and raised my hands, palms out:

I always had a touch of magic

I had always been able to call it in times of distress

And I called it then to stop the tide

The water at my ankles was gone now

Only wet sand under my feet

As the ocean reared up 

like a demon of the deep

White crest, the black mountain

I did not know if it would work

But I could not save you otherwise

The mountain roared as it broke

It rushed into an invisible wall

Power like lightning flowed from my palms

And I held it back, I held back the black tide

The thunder roared loud and the lightning streaked white

And I held it back, I held back the tide

I turned my head

You had escaped the sand

You made your way to the black stone cliffs and began to climb

Let him be safe, I prayed

You cut your precious hands on the stone and my heart leapt

Let him be safe, I prayed

Keep him alive

The sea drew back again, more ferocious than before

And crashed against my magic wall

And the wall stood like a stone door

The sea drew back again, black-green and furious

I braced myself and felt it strike my magic again

And the wall stood like a stone door

I turned my head and saw you, halfway up the cliff,

And I’ll admit I took pride

You had known of my magic, of course,

You had seen me charm shopkeepers and waitresses before

You had seen me speak to birds and talk to bumblebees and what’s more

You had felt my magic in your heart when that girl had called you names

And I did all I could

To make you feel loved again

I’ll admit, I was proud that you saw me, saw me holding back a storm

But even I do not know where my magic comes from

And it withered in an instant,

And the wall fell

And the sea drew back

It hit me once

Drove me knee-deep into the soft sand

I thought I heard you call my name before

The waves buried me, threw me on my back

Filled my nose with black-brown seawater

Rushed down my throat into my lungs

And rushed back out

I coughed and struggled

Pulling at my legs to free them

And the water rushed back in

Jerking my arms above my head, filling my nose, my throat, my lungs

And you watched the sea that I once held down

Rear back a third time, and you watched me drown