the valley

we got here on Tues. it's so flat, brown, dry and dusty. i told that to a friend of mine who's originally from Browsville (another valley town), and she said it wouldn't be the valley if it wasn't like that. it's true. it's just a different kind of beauty....mesquite trees, cactus, palm trees.

my mom has an awesome hammock swing hanging from a hugemongous tree. it (with a cold beer) rocks me till i get sleepy before bed, and awake (with my chai) in the morning. i'm resolved to get one when we get a house with big trees. now, if i could just take some of these birds home. they make the sounds of my childhood. i don't hear them anywhere else. i know some are mourning doves...but the rest, well, i have no desire to find out. i just simply love them.
the first night here, i really missed my dad. he died 6 years ago right after christmas. there are so many things that remind me of him...but so many things have changed, too. it was a hard first night out on that swing.

since then, it's been so much better. i'm loving everything for what it is, not for what i still wished it were.