. . . and Still the Desert Lives On

Through the extremes of hot and dry weather,

the undying desert lives on.

When the sun rises in the east and

hangs himself up high,

the cactus wren sings his familiar

raspy song,

the cacti paint the land with vibrant

colors . . . red, yellow, orange,

and the turkey vultures put old carcasses

to rest.

The desert lives on.

As the sun subsides behind the mountainside

and darkness takes over,

the bats soar in patternless flight, scooping

up insects as they whiz by.

The cougar patiently stalks his prey

step by step,

and the rattlesnake sits and waits for an

unwary kangaroo rat.

The desert lives on.

After the rains come in to swallow

the countryside,

the air smells of new life,

with cacti filling out and

the grasses turning green,

the ground squirrels come out of their

dens to play.

And the earth begins to dry.

The desert lives on.

And as man continues to tear up the land

by cattle and sheep overgrazing

and rerouting water where it is not

supposed to be.

The land erodes away

and the dust storms go up in a fury.

. . . and still the desert lives on.

Marla Hibbitts, March 1997