Caretakers in the Desert
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| Moonrise over Dolan Springs, AZ |
It's a place that fights against you being there. The desert is prickly and venomous with aggressive weather that assaults on all fronts.
It doesn't want you here.
But there are those who dwell in the uninhabitable and inhospitable. They find camaraderie and welcome in the heart of a dry, dusty land.
It seems unthinkable that anyone would live here.
Until you live here.
You find beauty in cacti spines and the plumes of the Joshua Tree, staring up at the Milky Way in awe, and you find unexpected spiritual springs of water welling up to nourish the dry barren places of your heart.
It's not unthinkable. It's splendid. It's an enviable way of life - because the desert dwellers among us lean into these warm winds, working tired backs and strong hands, mining remote areas of the earth, of the human spirit, otherwise abandoned and ignored.
The desert is unwelcoming, yes. But for the Caretakers, they create a special welcome and much-needed respite in the desert bowl, in the shadow of the mountains.
