What are we talking here -

Some miserly mist above the dunes?

A drip in the sand?

A damp patch in the shadow of a rock?

Or just vapour, a mirage?

A taunt for a thick-tongues wanderer

Mad with heat and dust,

And a thirst that can't be quenched?

No, this is H2O, full and throaty,

Torrents of the clear cool stuff,

Enough to float elephants.

This is the real thing,

Streams of it, rivers, oceans,

Gallons and litres, waves and breakers,

Buckets, bores and tides.

So drink it, swim in it, splash and roll in it.

Dive under, leap over and sink to the bed.

Let the push and pull roll over you.

It's free, fresh and vigorous.

There's plenty of room for all of us,

And the further out you go,

The easier it gets to swim -

In Him.

David Wright, Southampton.

Daily Echo poet-in-residence Polly Clark writes: "This poem formed part of an exhibition by Christian writers and poets, held recently in St Mary's, Southampton. I enjoyed its joyful water imagery, and the way it approaches a religious subject in a fresh way."

You can e-mail Polly on polly.clark@soton-echo.co.uk.