At the River

Quietly he stood,
words of the Baptizer
still hanging in the air.
Thinking, deciding, wondering
about walking into the river,
yet, still he stood.

What the prophet asked
was actually unnecessary.
No one like him
needed waters of baptism,
already a Jew, and
already one of God's chosen.

Only those who wanted
what he already had
needed the cleansing waters.
Unlike them, righteous,
needing nothing more
than birth to prove it.

Still, he paused wondering
about the prophet's words.
God's doing something new,
"Repent, be ready!" he cried.
So down he walked,
water rising up over him.

(Mark 1:5)