is upon us, scorching our eyes
like the dry heat-blast
of a quickly opened oven.
How even the vultures survive it
is a mystery, their dark swirls
filling the sky like black dust devils.
The deer dig scrapes beneath mesquite,
lying down in clouds of dust.
The yuccas thrust their sword-shaped
leaves into the sky, defiant
as Beethoven on his deathbed,
challenging God with his raised fists.