Things I saw today:
two crows, more than once,
flying close enough to hear the
whisper of their wings;
a red tailed hawk,
wings outspread,
tan against the blue;
snake-thin lightning
jumping from the midnight clouds
to the tops of the distant hills;
mesas and red rocks
and Indian ruins
that could only be seen
from the hilltop high above them;
a rainbow, flickering colour
against a black wave of clouds;
dry washes,
where only the memory of water
moves in the dust,
and rivers, surrounded by
valleys of lush growth;
dusk, velvety and deep,
tinted a purple red
in the last rays of the sun.
This is a land of light;
badlands that not only reflect the sun,
but glow with an inner radiance
that makes the dark clouds gleam,
the red hills sing.
About the Author: Charles de Lint is the author of Circle of Cats, Waifs and Strays, The Onion Girl, and numerous other works of fiction for children, teenagers, and adults.
Copyright © 2003 by Charles de Lint. The poem may not be reproduced in any form without the author’s express written permission.