Though I can see the other shore

I cannot see the end of the lake on either side

Fading into the far distance

I know Keuka Lake is shaped like a Y

I am a tiny dot along that y

The houses across the way

Look as if I could pick them up

Between my fingers

It is funny how things seem small

The farther they are away

Perspective is what it is called in art

That word with so many layers of meaning

Perspective

The surface of the lake

Like cooling molten glass

Tiny ripples on the surface

There was a year I came here and did not swim

Embarrassed to put on a swimsuit

Aware of all the imperfections of my body

Smaller than I am now

Yet now I swim

Allowing the cooling water

To refresh me on a hot day

Enjoying my children’s antics

As they splash and play

Knowing the time for play is short

My time with them is shorter still

Perspective

I am glad I have not only enjoyed

The glassy surface of things

But have submerged my body in the water

Flown across the waters on a boat

Enjoyed the footage of a fish swimming by my son’s submerged camera

Watched the fishermen in their boats patiently waiting

For a fish to come to their lure

Heard the cry of the gulls also looking for fish

Prayed and listened

Listened and prayed

The still small voice easier to hear

Here

Perspective

Awe comes when I look closer

Take time to notice the tiny layers of petals on every flower

How the tiger lilies close themselves up at night against the cold

And spread their silky petals out wide during the heat of day

To notice the sunlight shining on the back of the rowboat

Its other half in the shadow of the cottonwood tree

The scratches its hull has made in the wood upon which it rests

The foam and seaweed that gathers along the shore where the water

Endlessly washes each pebble

Perspective

Deep calls to deep

Lord help me not be satisfied with

The surface of things

Help me dive deep

Swim deeper

Trusting in your Spirit to buoy me

When I am in water over my head

Teach me to relax into your current

To rest on your Sabbath

To experience the endless waters of your goodness

Farther than my eyes can see

And offer sweet refreshment to others

May I share words of life with my students

Inspiring them not just to love Shakespeare or Frost

But to seek you

To never be satisfied with admiring the surface of things

To dive deep

To offer rest in the midst of much weariness

Silence in the midst of much noise

But I must first partake of those things myself

Listening and praying

Praying and listening

To the still small voice of your Spirit