On Finding Gilead

I had the day off from work today in honour of Independence Day, and along with wasting a lot of time lounging about the house, I also managed to get outside long enough to go on a walk with God. It was a simple thing, just me exploring the world around me. No one who knows me well would have been surprised at all by anything I did: walking by the river, looking over the edge of a bridge, swinging, climbing a jungle gym, climbing a tree. But I went with God, and I talked with him a lot. It was one of the most restorative conversations I have ever had with him. Perhaps it was because I let myself be myself with him. I am sometimes overly formal when it comes to prayer, and even my faith in general. This was a good break from that. I think God would agree.
Maybe I'm learning something.

Rest

I went down to the river this afternoon
The sun was finally out
And I thought the day deserved a walk
It certainly did
I think perhaps it told me so.
Beneath the bridge the water raced quickly
Hastening on with unknown purpose
And the wind in the trees
Lent a roar to the river's murmur
So one would almost think the water dangerous
It wasn't so dangerous
And it delighted in the sunshine
Reflecting and spreading the light for all to share.
I walked in the shade of the trees
Where the sunlight fell in mottled grins
And I found an inlet there
Where the water was calm and gentle
Smooth stones rested below
And ducks were teaching their young to swim
The ground all about was flecked with tufts of down
Shed by ducklings yearning to fly
The soft, tiny feathers
Reminded me of the not too distant spring
When the cotton fell
And hung in the air like magic
Casting the world in a softer tint.
I waded into the still water
Delicately
It was colder than I expected
But refreshing
Maybe even healing
The water swirled and eddied about my feet
Washing away
The dirt of the steps that brought me there
Washing it away
Then I sat on a broad flat stone
Letting my feet dry in the mottled sunlight
Listening to the quiet words of the water
And I felt my soul restored.