The Joshua Tree

Sun Hands

As the sun set on our last day in Joshua Tree National Park,
we climbed the giant boulder next to our campsite at Jumbo Rocks
to get a better look. Dozens of people appeared on the horizon,
rising up from the shadows looking like a Paleolithic community.
The rocks sustained the sun's warmth for a while after it set,
then the chill of night swept across the desert.














I climbed to the top of a hill
But I had just missed the sun
And although the descending arc was gone
Left behind were the traces that always follow along

The most beautiful colors chase the sun
They wrap her trail in a taunting gesture
That seems to sing out loud,
"this is what you're missing"

-Sun Hands, Local Natives

Pretty Prickly Things

Every place we went seemed like a different planet. Joshua Tree was no exception.















This hurt us both.