The Rescue of Natalie Wood

She plays the victim so often,
her small shaky voice
seems as tiny as she is,
those beautiful dark Russian eyes pleading
like rippling pools of fear...

And now she is here -
in this dark water -
no camera to record her fear,
no sound engineer
to capture her cries...
just a curious moon
spreading no light
as her slim form slips
almost imperceptibly
beneath the surface.

I wait in the cold current,
then surge forward,
grabbing her.

She's so fragile,
doll-like almost.
I can barely make out
her perfect features
in this troubled seascape.

I hold her firmly,
her face just above the wave.
We struggle in the darkness,
no ship's light,
no miracle lifeboat,
no compass, no guide...

I hold her tightly,
our breathing labored.
I hear her whispered prayers
like soft billowing epiphanies
carrying us quietly       gently       safely
back to shore.

Vernon Waring has been a newspaper reporter, feature editor, and public relations account executive. He is currently employed in the quality control department of a Philadelphia printing company. His poetry has appeared in The Writer, The Iconoclast, the Alabama School of Fine Arts Poetry Quarterly, the Midwestern University Quarterly, New Dimensions, Anthology, the South Street Star, MAYA, and the Stylus. His work has also been featured on NPR-sponsored Prairie Home Companion web site. His light verse has been published in the Saturday Evening Post and the Philadelphia Daily News.

Email: Vernon Waring

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