Summer Days Limp Along - July 19, 2024

under an abandoned blue sky

she finishes her 15-hour trek

collapses at sunset  lays on the

side of the western mountain

relieved her sojourn is over

as the torched landscape darkens

you won’t hear her whimper

over the coyotes’ suffering cries

she’s done this so many times before

walked back across the valley

under full and moonless nights

to stand at dawn on the eastern peak

shift the weight of a burnt

world on her shoulders

step off the mountain top

and set the pace for another day