Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.
Terry Pratchett
an unexplained ruin in Joshua Tree
my last desert hike
I stumbled on a ruin
crumbling into dust
and realized I was ready to go home
home again - water everywhere
home where water flows freely
pussy willow blossoming
where spring blossoms riot - bursting through their skins
Allium breaking through
Narcissus looking down
where narcissus is already in full bloom
Ferns unfurling
where the forest floor fills with ferns
single-minded squirrel
where squirrels sneak up to steal suet
living in the land of tulips
where the silky tulips glisten
swimming silently by
and silent mallards swim
lily of the valley
where lily of the valley is wet with dew
solitary tree on the edge of the dunes, overlooking the channel
and a single tree keeps vigil over the grassy dune.
Where we love is home - home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.
Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.
I loved the magic of Joshua Tree, but I am so happy to be back home. I am grateful that you are here with me.