On the Eve of a New Year

Seven years ago I moved from the Midwest to Arizona, largely prodded by my closest friend Terri Windling who was living here at the time. And how could I have known how prophetic and utterly true and beautiful would be this poem "Dear Sister" from Lisa Cihlar. Here's a few lines that reverberate the strongest:

"...There are other sharp and poisonous things to consider. And road runners which are neither prickly nor poisonous and their feet are zygodactyl, which means two toes point forward, and two point backward. They may be coming or going. If you must go to live in the desert, leaving this moist land where skin ages much better, please accept my gift of leather gloves. The sun alone is enough punishment for the things you have done."

As I begin my eighth year in this dry desert where mountains and monsoons temper the sun's punishment, I gratefully look forward to a new year of thorns and sweetness, of writing and rewriting, of family and more family, of friends and better health. I wish everyone a joyful New Year's Eve and all best wishes for the coming year.

About the Art: This image above is "The Cactus Wren" a piece in Kathryn Polk's gorgeous "Women of the West Portfolio." Do stop by her wonderful blog Non-Indigenous Woman which chronicles her work as an artist.