Tonight's Poet Corner: To The Rescue

To The Rescue
by Belinda Roddie

I've never wanted to be a hero, she said
over an ashtray and a Moscow mule. Don't
think I could pull it off, anyway. Capes get
in the way, and my face ain't the right shape
for a mask. And I can't grow adamantium
claws from my knuckles or wield katanas
like some of those costumed crusaders can.

You know, I was driving home when a lady
passing on the other side mouthed an apology,
because I guess she didn't let me turn left,
even though it was definitely her right of way.
I don't know if that makes her a good person,
just like I don't know if guiding a student through
essays and stressful exams makes me heroic.

Who knows, she concluded, as she let the vodka
accompany the lime in its burning voyage
down her esophagus. Maybe one day, even if I
can't change the world, I'll be powerful enough
to slow down its spin when we're having good days,
and speed up its rotation when everything's going
horribly wrong. And then I'll make it whirl so
fast that we'll be able to see sixteen sunsets and
sixteen sunrises before we fall asleep, and sure, we'll
be a lot older, but we'll have a bit more gold in our
hair, and a little more fire in our eyes.