Bits & Pieces

The Flood

Entry in The Bookshop Picture Prompt Challenge - December 2018

It had arrived without a warning

a torrential rain turning footing slick

driving sheets making the river rise

and the unimaginable occurred too quick

They said he didn't hesitate

when the accident took place

they said a look of horror

fixed a mask upon his face

They said he stripped his shoes and coat

and plunged into the flood

disappeared then rose again

from the torrent, stained with mud

They watched him flail toward the figure

bobbing in the swell

they saw him make a desperate lunge

a version they would tell

They watched two tiny dots

swirl toward the weir

and clutching one another

felt expectation turn to fear

"Hang on my darling!"

the swimmer sputtered

"I'll keep you safe."

the vow he uttered

He heard them call from somewhere close

and glimpsed the men atop the bank

arms outstretched to grasp them both

he prayed there'd be someone to thank

The surging water drove them hard

and hitting the weir he felt the pain

in a single-minded act he held her high

the last command from a failing brain

The weight was lifted from his hands

and he knew at last the girl was saved

then surrendered to the river's pull

survival for himself now waved

Once more they tried, their act in vain

fingers grasped but couldn't grip

the hungry waters pulled him down

and as he sank he felt them slip

Stark faces turned to greet the woman

the sobbing girl tight by her side

helpless in their rescue's failure

embarrassed as she broke and cried

She felt the tug from the tiny hand

and knelt down slowly, features drawn

her heart split wide from the question asked

"Mommy, where has daddy gone?"