by Timothy Tocher
When Johnson and Jensen realized the ship was sinking, they raced to save the fair Annabelle. Gripping her elbows, they bore her to the rail, fighting through the driving rain. Below, a lifeboat bobbed in the roiling sea.
Johnson said, “I will climb into the boat. Lower Annabelle into my arms.”
Jensen frowned. “In that position, might you not, inadvertently, view some portion of the lady’s anatomy customarily shielded from view?”
“I will avert my gaze.” Johnson put one leg over the side, then halted. “Speaking of inadvertent exposures, as you are lowering Annabelle, might not you, by accident, find your vision drawn to her spectacular décolletage?”
Jensen hesitated. The ship groaned and listed farther from plumb. “I shall shut my eyes and keep them closed until you announce that she is safely down.”
Johnson lifted his leg, then lowered it to the deck. “You still might compromise the lady’s honor. Suppose your eyes open reflexively in response to … a peal of thunder?”
Jensen rubbed his chin in contemplation. “Perhaps we could fashion blindfolds. Then neither of us could betray Miss Annabelle’s trust through treachery or chance.”
“A fine idea, but what could we use?”
The ship shuddered nearly throwing all three overboard. Annabelle removed her hat and tore off two wide red ribbons that had trailed down her back. Johnson and Jensen took them, touched them to their breasts, then tied them tightly behind their heads.
“I see nothing,” Johnson shouted to be heard over the gale.
“All is black,” agreed Jensen.
Satisfied at last, the two resumed the rescue. Proving the effectiveness of the blindfolds, they collided and plummeted into the churning brine.
Sighing, Miss Annabelle climbed over the rail. She shinnied down a rope into the lifeboat, cut the rope with the sewing scissors she carried in her bag, and slid the oars into the oarlocks. Rowing swiftly away from the ship, she frowned. She had lost her two favorite ribbons leaving her with a quite common hat.
Moral: Seeing too much is preferable to doing too little.
Bio:
A resident of New York State’s Hudson Valley, Timothy Tocher writes stories, poems, and nonfiction for all ages. He is the author of five, sports-themed books for middle grade and teen readers.