Combing the Desert {Rural Arizona}

The desert tracks you with unrelenting malice
beats down upon you like a gang rape.
Scars remind you that you’re here,
though altered. Theory states
that you’re still alive, but no longer
are you you. Naive
and soft, parts of skin hold each
other together, intertwined lovers
after the sun goes down
it’s cold outside, and the ground sucks
up all the heat,
and I hope
I can find you
and keep you warm,
mummified
in a state of perfection.