November 2, 2010

on the verge of the Grand Canyon

Just because you're close doesn't mean you have to go. The day
is full of directions, and north is simply one of them. You could choose
elsewhere, an acre of desert floor to nose for wildflowers, say,
or the town further south with a bench by the river to read the headline news.
You could walk the perimeter of your hotel room, watch bad TV, then sleep.
Or drive five minutes to sit in a café and excavate the mine
of a new poem. A good view can happen anywhere, even deep 
under the surface, a geography you unfold into with a map so fine
as to require your utmost care. The question is this: what does your heart know
in this one holy moment? Pay attention. That’s where you need to go.