The pony’s warm breath steaming in the chill
Feeling his power pulsating under my knees
The burnt orange sun peeking over the hill
Long shadows of the velvet mesquite trees
The rhythmic beat of the hooves on the land
As I pass the prickly, saguaro and barrel cacti
A ring-tailed cat darts for a hole in the sand
As a hawk’s soars over flying high in the sky
The Earth’s soul revealed in each grain of sand
That hide the secrets of my native ancestors
Peoples who long ago inhabited this dry land
That is still a desert highway for sojourners
The plaintive cry of a lonely mourning dove
Mixed with the screech of the tiny elf owl
Spur me on towards the west and my true love
As the desert day creatures begin their prowl
Two more arroyos to traverse to be by her side
To be again back in her tender loving embrace
The Colorado Plateau is a long tedious ride
But it will all be worth it to see her smiling face.