Relaxing vacation and a Sunday drive with my aunt and uncle,
Sunshine streaming through the window
Warming me until the mild morning’s chill is forgotten.
We converse happily until
An astonishing view cuts me off mid-sentence as the
Flat desert highway gives way to the ever-increasingly bigger
Foothills of the Santa Catalina mountains.
Approaching Mount Lemmon, the destination,
We begin winding slowly up the side of the mountain,
My breath stolen by the
Sudden and awesome change of terrain.
On the left, square rock outcroppings reach majestically
Toward the clear, blue sky.
On the right, the view of the valley behind
Quickly fading until
The houses look like toys and finally
Disappear altogether behind the last bend in the road.
Regal Saguaro and Ocotillo cacti as far as the eye can see, and other
Hardy desert plants impossibly growing
Out of ground so hard
Where water only flows
Hundreds of feet below.

Every curve in the road, each quarter mile forward
Reveals a new vista more
Beautiful than the one before it.
The rapid change in elevation quickly
Reveals the ability of different plants and trees
To withstand higher altitudes than the cacti.

We pull over at a popular lookout point, and
With camera in hand, I exit the vehicle
Expectantly, eagerly, anticipating
The panoramic beauty before me.
Milky white clouds float lazily overhead,
Occasionally casting temporary shadows below them.
As we approach the pathway
I feel the breath of wind in my face and perceive the
Unmistakable drop in temperature.

From here we can see for miles,
Brown mountains spotted with green that
Appear as hazy and blue in the distance, a truly
Stunning and overwhelming scene that leaves me
Speechless –
Overcome by the
Reality that I am so small in a
Vast world of wonder.
I cautiously climb to the top of a flat
Rock partially blanketed with soft blue and green lichen.
I rest for a moment and
My thoughts turn to the One who is so much
Higher than I, the
Creator of all this beauty I am
Currently drinking in.

Before I am ready, the time comes to leave this beautiful site.
Reluctantly, I follow my aunt and uncle back to the
Truck to continue our
Journey up the Mountain.
As we ascend to an elevation of 8,000 feet,
It is the pine trees which now
Cover the rocky landscape and for a moment I
Forget I am in Arizona, for
Snow covers the ground and
Rests heavily
On the pine branches.

Windows down, I drink in the
Aroma of pine and wet earth, as the
Sun continues shining,
Melting snow and Winter’s chill, bringing
Spring at last to the top of this
Awesome,
Majestic,
Arizona
Mountain.