As in a dry and barren land........

As a hart longs for flowing streams

so longs my soul for You

O Beloved

My soul thirsts for the Beloved

for the Living Water      Psalm 42*

The landscape of the Southwest US is disorienting for someone who lives in the Northeast.  Gone is the green of chlorophyll, the cooling shade of trees in full bloom.  Gone is the sound of rushing water or the placid calm of an Adirondack Lake.  The variety of cacti is evident even if I have no idea of their names .....although to be honest, I am  not all that good at recognizing the different varieties of deciduous trees at home either.  Many of the roads are not paved, I think because they don't need to be.  (There is so little rainfall that they won't wash out in the Spring.)

The Spring Winds which are blustering today would be called a blizzard if there were snow......but of course there isn't.  It is a dust storm that you need to watch for.  It is a good idea to have your own water wherever you go; dehydration comes quickly.  A local said, "New Mexico is not a good state to get lost in."

Here in this high desert I am able to enter this favorite and ancient psalm with the sensation of physical need, a dryness of nose and eyes and mouth along with the dryness of soul that the psalmist implies.  In this country, the vision of Living Water is no longer simply a calming, peaceful spot in a harried day, but it is life itself; one is quickly reminded not to wander too far from the source of water.

God has an infinite number of ways to call us back into the presence of the Living Water.  Some days it is just an invitation to rest in the shade; some days it is the promise of life itself.

The Living Water never fails.


*Psalms for Praying: an invitation to wholeness.  Nan C. Merrill.  p 78