Standing over the cold rails of the bridge, the girl gazed at the dark glassy waters below, would it be cold? Would it hurt when she hit the water? The clouds covering the sun gave her skin a shiver of bumps; she looked at the reflection of herself in the water, her reflection moved with the waters as it said “Dive In! What you lose, is far less than what you win”, then the wind carried her fearful thoughts away and she jumped into the reflection of wisdom to play.
I watched the above scene (creatively written obviously, just in case y'all think I’m loopy) play out one day, one of those days where you just observe…I couldn’t stop thinking about the girl who was so scared and the complete swap of fear and joy she had on her face before she jumped. Then it occurred to me, to be able to jump in and have that moment, things need to be deep and scary… So I asked myself these two questions, Why does it have to be deep? Why depth?
At the core of everything lies embedded the code, the DNA, the life, the how, the why, these things often small and mostly unseen. Like the depths of the ocean, the core of an apple, the roots of a tree and the structure of a house; get the foundations/roots right and the tree will stand strong! Depth is something you carry with you, it is seen in the health of the tree and the taste of the fruit. If the core is rotten, the fruit will taste bad, even if it looks good on the outside.
To go “deep” with someone and even with your self (sometimes far harder) is to know them beyond what they look like and what they “show”. I think that that is why all that is deep is often hidden, like a treasure in someone or yourself, so that you get to find it along the journey if you’re willing to search it out. Would you read only the cover of a book? would you appreciate the beauty of a flower yet never learn what it needs at its core and depths to stay alive?
Our thoughts, cares, true desires and loves go so far beyond the surface, embedded deep into our hearts and minds. Married couples know this so well, a single tap or shoulder pat could mean an entire page of unspoken words, or silence, or a look means something only depth of understanding could fathom.
If we are not deep we risk being the opposite, shallow. When waters are shallow, you cannot dive in and explore the depths. Have you ever noticed how the shallow waters that are clear are often just sand? Yet the deep blue farther from the shore holds so much coral and sea life, or even how there are warning signs at pools warning of the shallow ends. It hurts when we dive into shallow water, shallow people and lives will do the same.
It’s okay to dip your toes in before you dive in! Depth is a slow waltz, and depth and discernment hold hands as they dance like old lovers that know each curve and dimple in each other’s spine. Sometimes the water will smell sharky or the waters are icy cold… or will it suffocate me? If you can swim, these waters just take a little longer to be able to be in fully. But waters melt and sharks flee where there is a light as bright as the sun and there is a bigger fish in the water called LOVE. Depth doesn’t happen over night – but it does happen (Maybelline jokes haha)
I know so many people who have fallen in love with others hearts and minds, after knowing them a while, or those that weren’t initially drawn to the other. What a beautiful thing to say to a special someone “I’ve fallen in love with the very depths of you”. Depth scares some people, but the depth is WHO WE ARE!!! Not what we look like, what we wear, the job we have, the place we live… should that not mean then that the choices we make for the above things should be built upon and start with “Who you are” and “where your identity and beliefs lays”
Depth is not fleeting, depth is strong, depth is substance and grounding, depth is understanding, in depth is wisdom and discernment, depth is treasure; a treasure to be searched and loved despite what we think of the value of said treasure found; small coins or trunks full… Do people not go snorkelling or diving if they aren’t sure what they will find? Or there is a fish they cant “name”, describe or understand. Would you rather go your whole life staring at the waters below, always wondering but never knowing?
“ May your love more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, that you may be able to discern what is best..” - Phillipians 1:9