thin ice

there's a man
drowning in the lake.

I can see him from the window.
his hands
flailing in the air.

he's walked out onto the ice
too far.

the weather too warm,
the ice too thin to hold his
weight.

and now, he's drowning.
I wave to him,

there's nothing I can do,
by the time I get there,
it will be way too late.

a crowd gathers around the edge.
they throw him
ropes, branches,

they yell at him, asking him
why he walked
out on the ice.

they berate him, you knew that
this was dangerous, how
could you?

he has no answer as he turns
blue in the cold water. he tires,
he says he's sorry.

he says he regrets what he's
done, he regrets his
entire life,
he wants forgiveness,
but it doesn't matter.

his life has come down to this.
to drowning
in a lake.