Your little hands gripped the controller
as you walked steadily, purposefully toward
the water's edge.
On a forty-five-degree day at the lake,
legs in white shorts, intently advancing.
Whhhzzzzzzzzzz,
Whhzzzzzzzzz
the gentle whir entered the atmosphere
as if calling to you as you
willed it to budge.
Your little torso pushed forward, feet planted.
Finger pressing an unseen button:
Whhzzzzzzzz,
Whhhzzzzzzzzzzz
Out to sea, where the water met
a receding ice shelf was marooned
the little motor boat
you were trying to bring inland.
It rolled and rammed up against the ice
Whhhhhzzzzzzzzzz.
I walked along, you standing there shoreside, trying,
and I know you weren't giving up. Even though
you were in the shade and in shorts, and it seemed unlikely—
you looked around as if for help
and pushed the button again.
