I see the green of the desert

I see the green of the desert

That overcomes the brown 

Clinging to ground and water

 

And with gentle affection

It might reveal some color

Like a yellow persuasion. 

 

I feel the fermenting sun

Calling out the vultures

That fly with a heart of one. 

 

It heats a beautiful hearth

Of brown quartz and white granite

That swears of Nature’s wealth. 

 

I sense the black jaguar’s stare - 

Eyes that have a thirst for blood

And those teeth - a gnashing lair. 

 

I smell blood in the wind

When death captures its prey

And in birth when life tries again. 

 

I hear the cicadas’ buzz

Drowning in humidity

As thunderheads growl above - 

 

Billowing, creeping steadily

To the hour of their rage - 

Covering the path of a coyote. 

 

I taste the kindness of plants 

Of palo verde, jojoba - 

What nutrients each grants!

 

I spy the purple mountains

Blending in with their shadows - 

Not knowing where either begin. 

 

They tempt my spirit below

To their crags and lonely peaks - 

To secret places I know.