The plunge into the water was the hardest part. The explosion of frigid salt water against my skin. The commitment I knew I was making, the promise I had to now keep. The responsibility weighed heavy on my frail human shoulders, shaking in the cold the air pressing my lungs, begging to be released, demanding that I inhale a breath of death, of the frozen salt lake. My wet hair flew around my face, over my tightly shut eyes, in the power of the promise this water meant. A strong arm grasped my hand and pulled me up, reborn into a new life, a life where I had to uphold so much, greater than me, and represent at all times, and in all things, and in all places. I wasn't sure I was ready. I had a split second, and in it, I wanted to resist, to remain unburdened. Without the responsibility and the wonderful blessings that came with it. I didn't deserve the gifts of this covenant. But I didn't resist. I let the arm pull me up into a new world, brighter, deeper. I shuddered in the cold, and brushed the dripping, heavy strands of hair off my face, heavy with my new responsibility. I wiped the stinging salt out of my eyes and took the offered towel. I shook in the face of the promise I felt myself unable to make, but even still my soul leapt in me and I couldn't stop the broad grin crossing my face, embracing the new meaning to my life. I wasn't afraid anymore.