Savior

A small grove of trees,

A white picnic bench,

And the line that runs from birth to eternity

Began to waver.

I think maybe we both saw it,

Me and the one I was with,

But maybe I was the only one

Who wanted to escape

From the undertow that would pull us under.

And I reached out a hand to say,

“I don’t have to be the only one.”

But as the waves crashed around

I felt no fingers wrap around my wrist.

The water rose up to my chin

When I was rescued from the tide,

But I was saved,

So I’m alive!

Can you imagine a sky made of bronze,

To be cloistered in under no exit,

No flight of the bird,

To watch hope fade away?

Can you see the heaviest of raindrops

On a wilted flower that was once beautiful?

Does beauty go away so easily

And does that lovely tree I remember

In the field of grace and compassion

Really fall away under the furnace heat of heaven?

I would save it if I could.

I sought a way to bring the wilted flower inside,

To maybe water it

With a more gentle shower of mercy.

But I had to let it go.

No, I can’t save,

But I’m alive!

So now I wonder about the birds

Who glide up into the air

Away from the approaching storm.

You showed me how to be free again,

To wander onto a new path,

Into a new field,

A meadow of such beauty

That reminded me again of what I am looking for.

You were there

And you are here with the stars

In the clear bright sky

Of amazing grace and a longing generation.

You showed me that maybe red eyes

Are just a sign of the love and hope

I could never complete on my own.

Only you can save,

And I’m alive!

So here we sit and here we stand,

Reading these lines

Again and again.

Here we are,

You and I,

Here together now

And here wondering about forever

And wondering about the past,

Considering if love this time or that time

Is ever the love that I talk about.

But I wonder, with all that happens,

Do you still hold to the notion

That you have nothing to regret?

What could I have to regret?

Every joy is joy

And every misery is learning.

I am here now and the road

Is made for this moment.

I am here with you now,

And so how could I ever take back anything

To keep me from you?

And so you have all those meadows journeyed

When you learned the meaning of love.

But would you take back those moments

When I called you

And you never picked up the phone?

Dear love, could I take it back?

Can I take back what I’ve done to you?

Can I not have the blood

On my hands

On my hair

Mixed with the dirt on the ground

And splashed on my legs?

Shall I give it back

For all of those nights it was just me

With selfish me

And I didn’t have the decency to listen

When you wanted to talk?

This wolf with blood on its teeth

Begins to look an awful lot like me.

Just rest now.

Here in the cool of fresh air

And here in the warmth of welcoming arms,

Just rest now.

No, you can’t give it back.

I won’t let you give it back.

It is free.