John 5:1-9

How long must you wait

by the water’s edge

for the angel to dip

her fickle toe and

stir the surface

of the world?

And what if

even after

days, months

of waiting,

watching,

you sense

the air’s movement,

see the water shimmer

with circle after concentric

circle and yet,

are unable

to enter in?

To be near

the miracle is not

enough.  Second

place will earn you

no reward. 

What then?

Nothing can move

you save for the one

question most difficult,

“What do you want?”

The answer 

to that question

turns you away 

from waiting

and the still, 

smooth surface

of the water.  

The answer

to that question 

bids you,

“Pick up your mat 

and walk.”