Desert Light

Bright desert
Not so much dry as it is bright
For the yellow grass grows from some source
It is not brittle, just frothy and wispy and wavy
And the longhorn cattle quench their thirst
In the cottonwood groves deep in the canyon
where ancient people cooled their mouths from earthenware
and matched the rugged tumbling rock etched against sky
with outlines
of their cheekbones
dancing by the fire
in the crisp bright night

Janice Haynes, returning from Double Circle Ranch, Eagle Creek, Arizona, photo by Ryan Dressler
November 19, 2010