Morning View
Originally posted 11/13/2012
I imagine the temps are starting to get pretty crispy wherever you are these days. Here in the desert outside Quartzsite AZ, it hit a low of 38 last night. By 5AM, the trailer interior was 50 degrees which isn’t awful, but I fired up the Buddy heater on low to break the chill by the time I got up for the day. Then I went back to sleep.
When I woke up, the photo above represents exactly what greets my opening eyes most mornings here. Admittedly, my mind often gets too busy with the day’s “to-do” or “how-to” list, and I get up at 5 or 6 when it’s still only starlight out there. The hills to the west of me look featureless and drab just before sunrise, but the sun’s rays then begin to slowly crawl down them at a pace you can actually watch, and they come into their beauty. With a clear sky, sunset seems to occur so quickly that it’s like throwing a switch. The black outline of the hills against the dimly glowing sky is striking, as you may have noticed in an earlier post.
In those few moments (so far) when I’m not distracted by malfunctioning devices or equipment, or what needs to happen and how, the desert seems to transform itself from something to contend with into something that exudes a little peace – if one can tolerate not being busily preoccupied for a moment. It doesn’t calm you if you’re wound too tight. It just kind of stays available for awhile in its current form, if you’re ready to receive it and let it soak in.
Strolling Amok 