Woman at the Well
My pot was empty and dry
Oh, how I did thirst!
ThenI made my Journey
To get my water deep inside the well
I walked along my usual path
But Lo! A stranger sat at the well
Why has he come here?
I thought I must try to avoid him
“Woman, fetch me some water”
I froze in my surprise
Who was this man who should hate me?
Why did he speak to me?
The well is very deep
And takes all my strength
For I must go deep down
And ascend with the weight of my pot
Why should this man want my water
Who should reject me because of who I am
I, who was a stranger to him
Why did he entreat me so?
What is this water he spoke of,
Some wondrous water that would forever quench my thirst?
How do I find it? Where is it?
Something stirred inside me to know
As we conversed further, my astonishment grew
For this man knew everything I’d done
Something within me burned as he spoke
And I knew within me that this was a holy man
He spoke to me of days to come
When man was not limited to places for worship
But could do so always in mind, heart and soul
What a beautiful thought for my ears!
It came to my mind something I’d been told
Something taught in our Samaritan tradition
That a messiah would come and tell us all things
This man replied, “I that speak to thee am he.”
My eyes were opened and I saw at last
The true identity of this man
I ran back home with my heart full of joy
Testifying to others of what I knew
Come see the Holy Messiah, for He has come!
To me, he was a stranger, but to Him I was not
For he knew all I had ever done
Is not this the Christ?
Is not this the Christ?
Most people who are familiar with the Holy Bible would recognize this story. Technically, the writing itself takes only a few minutes, but with topics such as this, it is not without hours of thinking and reflection. This particular story caught my mind with enough of a hold that it revolved in my thought for several weeks. I thought about its significance and what message I could get from it. This poem was the result of that pondering session. It is one of my favorites.
