Born of Water & Spirit
By Ariana D. Den Bleyker
(John 3:1-6)
for Phyllis
& I ached in that moment,
longing for restoration,
my spirit heavy with the weight
of invisible fruit—
the soul of myself ripe.
& I felt the seed of it sending
its roots, silently, through
my stillness.
How to describe that moment
when we become, this awakening?
I calculated the distance between
womb & Heaven, dreaming
a dream for God to show me
what I was & who I’d become,
the breath in my chest carrying promise.
I was awake, silver water spilling,
less than arms-length in the patient
opening of one long-awaited
flower, the quiet mechanics
of one perfectly-crafted key turning
the lock of my body
as I crowned through blood & water,
slowly, slowly—
right shoulder reaching out
until I felt my soft edges sharpen
from the touch of God.
This new life, this plucked silence,
a teardrop—the Spirit sweeping
over the face of the waters,
knitting me together once more,
wind-like, dove-like,
holding me as I became
& Christ awakened in my body
from above through God’s cupped hands.