by Ariana D. Den Bleyker

It’s almost as if I can smell the air of Galilee, 
hear waves crashing, the thin, clear of water no map can name, 
hidden places. I love the way I find them, 
the way I follow no channel, just sound tangled 
in the shore to where slow water opens a hole to cast a net into, 
& lift from the well bright shadows of Heaven
fish held in my hand, the air around me alive, 
the water cooler & clearer, the sun brighter, the sky bluer, 
the fishermen surrounding me casting 
their nets methodically, cheerfully. 

*

In the waveless sea, deep blue under deep blue, 
the fisherman drifts by in His tiny vessel. 
Above Him the cloud-capped hills, 
& He flicks his wrist, throws a net across continents. 
I can hear it swish, slice clouds, going wherever there’s water, 
gathering the surge of body & fin, a miracle—
the submerged shaft of sun split like spun glass 
swiftly moving into the crevices, in & out, illuminates
the turquoise sea of my body, 
grabbing at my soul like a lion in a cage 
until I long for the smell of fish.

*

& the fisherman says, Follow me. 
& He smiles until I shed my scales for Him. 
& with a song on my lips, I too become a fisherman, 
raising my net, casting my soul, reeling in love, joy, peace, 
patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, 
gentleness, self-control, the fruits of the spirit; 
my cast not a question of strength 
so much as a relinquishing, 
that the net’s release is an extension 
from the wrist to the heart. & I’ll keep casting my net, 
& when it does not come back empty, 
I’ll step again into that small boat that carried me out 
& watch the bank recede—facing Heaven, 
trying again & again to find that perfect cast, 
gathering up the braids to find the fish writhing in my hands.

Ariana D. Den Bleyker is a Pittsburgh native currently residing in New York’s Hudson Valley where she is a wife and mother of two. When she’s not writing, she’s spending time with her family and every once in a while sleeps. She is the author of three collections and twenty chapbooks, among others. She is the founder and publisher of ELJ Editions, Ltd., a 501(c)3 literary nonprofit. She hopes you’ll fall in love with her words.