stretch out your hands

when you were young,
you used to dress yourself
and walk wherever you wanted,
but when you are old,
you will stretch out your hands...
                          ~John 21:18



stretch out your hands
a call to a new way of being
to a new posture
and a new spirit

not seizing
not grasping
not determining
not even reaching

this is a different kind of
stretching out of our hands altogether
one in which agenda
and independence
must be abandoned

one marked by
a courageous willingness
a trust-filled vulnerability
a total surrender

stretch out your hands
requires all
it is our true answer to
do you love me more than these