Deeper waters to visit

I was doing some other reading for class this morning; hadn't yet tackled Richard Rohr's words for today when I came to my computer.

This was the image that caught my eye this morning; I confess I'm curious as to why.  But I opened Richard Rohr's Wondrous Encounters, and the heading for today's reading is this: "The Soul Needs Images and Imaging to "Know" Things."

And doesn't THAT sound promising!  So here I am reading Richard Rohr, and he talks about the healing power of imagery, and then water as a healing metaphor for divine abundance, and then he talks about Jesus mirroring a man's best self -- and how "such perfect mirroring also carries further relationship and responsibilities with it."

So how does any of that relate to this image?  Certainly there's water here.  And it's mirroring what appear to be two sticks.  But those numbers feel ominous to me; like those serial numbers tattooed onto the wrists of concentration camp survivors.  And the two sticks become cuts on another wrist I've seen, of a self-destructive teen...  But what is that red leaf?  And I see someone has taken the time to patch what must have been a broken place...

Why did I stop to photograph this, and why am I still staring at it?  Perhaps the image is to reassure us: that though there will always be cruelty and pain in the world, it can become the ground on which we stand and move to higher aspirations?  Perhaps it is an invitation to step beyond past hurts and betrayals into a brighter future? 

Back to Richard Rohr, after staring at this for a bit, I see his prayer for today is also an invitation:

"Healing God, give me the courage to move forward, and help me to see that my deepest sin might be my unwillingness to keep growing."

We could stop here.  We could get all caught up in ruminating on the challenges we've faced, or patting ourselves on the back for having come so far, for having patched things up, for having survived.  It's good, indeed, to take some time to breathe; to pause for a moment of rest and restoration.  But don't assume the journey's done: there are more paths to walk and deeper waters to visit...