McDowell Sonoran Preserve, Tom’s Thumb
You feel the breath of mountain spirits
as you ascend endless switchbacks
to a granite monolith high above
the desert floor. Do not question
the Yavapai belief in these spirits.
It offers comfort, elicits respect
on this morning blessed with cloud,
cold and wind, brisk air.
Stones of many sizes and shapes,
both foreboding and protective
surround until you reach a false summit
and the switchbacks end.
You descend into the heart
of these ancient formations,
the terrain rocky with narrow passages
more ascents and a final short
jagged incline before the iconic spire
stands before you as if it were a god
a temple, a nirvana,
a revered mountain spirit
so close to stillness
and a silent nameless faith.
Roxanne Lynn Doty is a poet and fiction writer. She published her first novel in 2022, Out Stealing Water, a chapbook in 2024, Hours of the Desert and has a forthcoming poetry collection to be published in 2026, What Surrounds You. She lives in the Phoenix, Arizona area.
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