He struggled with his ****** wrap
To take that swim, enlightened and pure
And stood there in his nakedness
Hoping for absolution in the cold Holy Water
Those sin-stained linens at his feet
A crowd behind him
Waiting to see
If HIS God would attend
And if  True Salvation
Was only a
Waller away.
As the water closed over his body
And his nakedness, new and certain
His bones ached chilled
His soiled fists clenched
His moment of Birth
Was re-defined
And he drowned that morning
Only to be raised up
By Orchestral Divinity.
Soon the Crowd followed
Into the wash, re-birthing in this
New Nakedness
Unashamed of
Body
Or Soul
Beneath an Angel's
Hand
This poor man
Knew that there
Would be pain to follow
From his shallow  immersion
From this simple
Jumping in
As did his
Brethren
He lost his soul that day
Within those waters, cold and swift
But netted a new one
Raw and pure and as naked
As the soft silty clay
Beneath his feet.