Living the Dream

birdsong dry days
bald-headed cactus sweltering
in brittle bits of sand
where shade eludes scuttling things
searching for a damp place to be

sage sky simmers
over places man will not walk
but to collect medicine
for another heat
on the forehead of a child

leathery leaves turn hard faces
to boney-brindled cattle
and rough-ribbed horses
stumbling hot-brained
around twirling tumbleweed

a wrinkled hand drops tobacco
at hairy roots and offers a song
about water and gratitude
for even a desert
that can hold healing
in a gray un-needy clutch

Tags: Natural Nuances, Poems //