Float On

May we never forget
Halls flooded with patrons of the faith
Exchanging words of fellowship, flowing,
To build up and confirm the reason
We all swim together.

Many days have passed us,
With the warm sun on our back
Celebrations made in joyous cheer
Light up the smiles that break through
Clouds of fear and doubt.
But none sail with enough speed
To escape the gathering storms.

Hurricanes engulf us chaotically
Swirling and ripping away
At the best-laid plans.
Dark monsoon gusts shred the very boards
Beneath our feet, solid planks we knew
Would never desert us.
Yet the wood has no choice.

Cast into the murky oceans below,
It sinks and is gone to us.
Someday, those boards will wash ashore
Be found by a jubilant resident of the distant beach
Find its place, fitting perfectly
Into a house still recovering from the recent storm.
From the wounds of our ship
Will another home be healed.

Perhaps some day we may dock there
Wading in with the azure tides
And see, in all its majestic wonder,
The mansion our humble oaken limb has made possible.
Standing there, seeing what has grown
From the loss we mourned so long ago,
Take the joy you drink in so readily
And bottle it, to keep with you always
As a reminder of how one quick scar
Becomes the balm of Gilead for those yet unseen.