Lavar

Rain falls lightly, steadily.
A tub of velvety, heated water with fragrant bubbles
sits in the middle of a grove.
Brilliant green fronds glisten with the moisture
Heaven has bestowed on a grateful jungle.
I float amidst the wet on wet on wet:
sky, earth, body.
Steamy water envelops me.
Cool drops launch a pleasant assault on my exposed skin-
that which does not sink beneath the cover.
The earth wears a lush fragrance of renewal;
it is verdant, fertile.

I am a companion in this ritual of cleansing,
floating in a womb.
Fears, aches melt away in the heat.
Droplets descend on me from the treetops-a covering roof-
making music as they couple with surfaces exposed.
Color, fragrance, sound: my senses are full, stretched but not broken.
I am clean, covered-invulnerable for the moment.