The first reading from the prophet Ezekiel, like many other of his prophecies, are at once difficult to interpret and at the same time open to manifold interpretations. If the waters that the prophet speaks of can be understood as the river of life, when we are ankle-deep or knee-deep or waist-high in water or so high that we cannot cross over, then we forget to notice the trees growing on the banks of the river, the variety of fruits they bear, the evergreen nature of the trees, the manifold creatures living in the waters and many other things that words cannot capture.

Only wisdom guides us to step out of the river of life and take a look at the river of life from outside it. This look is not motivated, it is dispassionate and gives rise to gratitude. The gratitude that thus springs is not a goal to be achieved, rather a gratuitous gift from God.