I traveled through Taylor Canyon one evening not long ago, late-blooming rabbitbrush aglow, willows textured in bold shades of red and gold. And now, before heavy snow, after freezing nights, the canyon, meadows, mountains, and sky merge into hues of drab tans and vague blues. I’m tired of myself, dramamine queen of this interregnum, languid as a wasp on the frozen windowpane. But the dullness of the landscape consoles me, the monotony a respite from trying too hard to enliven my diminished life. I think I’ll stay still for a while, hoping I’ll remember the bright canyon trusting I’ll be ready for the coming season. |
AuthorNancy Harris McLelland taught creative writing, composition, and literature for over twenty years and Conducted writing workshops for the Western Folklife Center, Great Basin College , and the Great Basin Writing Project . An Elko County native with a background in ranching. McLelland has presented her "Poems from Tuscarora" Both at daytime and evening events at the Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko. Her essay, "Border Lands: Cowboy Poetry and the Literary Canon" is in the anthology Cowboy Poetry Matters . Categories |