The Cave

I spoke with many afterward, but none of the words were right

The only ones who understood

Were the ones who traveled down too

Even with them, words were no use

So instead we simply looked at each other, our faces brighter than stars

When we set out the sun beat down

Our breath came in puffs as we hiked ever upward

The air grew cold as we approached, tiny droplets misting our faces

The waterfall pounded and crashed till we could no longer hear ourselves think

You could feel it in your bones

It poured in a way that made you feel small

There was nothing you could do to stop it

It roared and rushed downward, downward, into the hole

Are we supposed to follow?

Downward into the hole, under the log, into the dark?

The limestone boulders leading downward were slick and slimy

And shadows quickly swept us in

You could not hear above the rush

Leap over the chasm, down the stone, farther in, into the darkness, further down, quicker, faster

Turn on your headlamp, lest you fall

Darkness growing, headlamps swinging, piercing the deepening shadows

The water pours around your feet

Careful, it will suck you down

Water seeps into your thick soled shoes and cold into your flesh

Downward, downward, follow the water, follow the rush down into the dark

Then…

It was quiet again.

Our voices grew soft as we looked upward

The ceiling was a sky of stars

Perfect round droplets, sparkling like crystal

It was far beyond what our minds could create

We moved more slowly, danger growing less now

Downward we went, climbing and squeezing through each new passage

My muscles tightened, stretched, and reached

They knew, somehow, just where to go

I climbed with ease I’d thought impossible

Yet, up I went without second thoughts

They held my weight, even helped others

It was almost an effortless feat

A little pride began to grow inside

For this body that moved on its own

Seeming to have skill I had not practiced

And strength I had not built

And so it earned respect from me

My body was quiet

My mind was quiet too

Quieter than it had been in a long time

It had to be, for to lose yourself in thought might mean losing your life

Yet danger we chose for the sake of creation

We chose the risk to see the depths of the earth

And while we journeyed further downward

Songs in Gaelic, English, and French wandered through the winding path

Our voices mingled and floated together

The words and notes mixing into perfect harmony

Each and every moment was its own

Time had not stopped, but it meant nothing at all

We continued on, forgetting the minutes, forgetting the hours

They were marked only by the patterns of the stone

By the watery stars on the ceilings above us

By the gaping holes beneath our feet

By the tiny brown bodies of sleeping bats

By the sparkling blue lichen speckling the stones

By the powdery sand that cushioned our boots

By the slick brown ropes and twisting passages

And farther, deeper down, by the yawning chasms

The final room was small and round

The floor all laden with nuts some brave squirrel had hidden there

We gazed around at the curved stone walls

Our eyes swept across the words carved years before

Laughing at the jokes and drawings

Then growing quiet as we found scripture written too

We picked up stones and began to follow suit

Filling the walls with our thoughts and prayers

Many a year may pass, but our words will still remain

Though as we leave, the words are swept into darkness

The carvings of grace will wait in the silence

Ready to shine a different sort of light to the ones who see them next

The cave.

We only call it ours for four short years

But forever it will be the Lord’s