I see the green of the desert
That overcomes the brown –
Clinging to ground and water –

And with gentle affection –
It might reveal some color
Like a yellow persuasion.

I feel the fermenting sun
Calling out the vultures
That fly with a heart of one.

I sense the black jaguar’s stare –
Eyes that have a thirst for blood
And those teeth – a gnashing lair.

I smell blood in the wind
When death captures its prey
And in birth when life tries again.

I hear the cicadas’ buzz
Drowning in humidity
As thunderheads growl above.

I spy the purple mountains
Blending in with their shadows –
Not knowing where either begin.

They tempt my spirit below
To their crags and lonely peaks –
To secret places I know.