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shoreline.

by Natalie Jones

See the girl with the small smile
and white face laughing into the wind.
She has strong legs but bad posture.
You can’t see it now, but soon
she’ll get into her boat and row home.

She had once called it a sea worth falling into
and swimming around in,
had called the tides the sadness of mourning.
Once at the shore, she thinks if she can bury
her head below the surface of the sand,
she’ll no longer have to scream to save her life.

Builds a barricade between herself and the mainland.
She once traced words in the sand as a child.
She understands the importance of both
remembering and forgetting.
She feels confident when she stands still,
looking at nothing in particular, as
beauty shines from her radially.

She faces toward the sun, wraps a thumb
and forefinger around her wrist in a circle.
Clasps her body now any way she can.
Thinks if she holds tight enough to herself
that it might be enough. When we leave her,
she still stands there,
illuminated for a little while longer.

03/17/2007

Posted on 03/18/2007
Copyright © 2010 Natalie Jones

Member Comments on this Poem
Posted by Richard Vince on 03/18/07 at 12:20 PM

magnificent. magical. just perfect.

Posted by Meghan Helmich on 03/24/07 at 09:53 AM

hey nyat. it's refreshing to encounter your imagery and language again. it's been too long.

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