Conversation in the Valley of Fire

---

Conversation in the Valley of Fire

By Melanie Perish

In the desert,

we wander

shale, limestone –

dry washes burst wet

with sky-squalls.

On the White Domes Loop – Look there,

you say; stone is sculpted light.

The twin-tailed comet is seen and unseen 

by kangaroo rat, cholla, rattler. We try

to be good animals in the dance

of time, in our turns

between natural formations.

Burnt-orange sand 

shifts beneath our feet,

blows across our lives.

Dust to dust, I say;

and you answer This moment

dust to stardust.