If It’s Yellow, Let It Mellow, Mr. Mann

Water conservation can be
a way of life, he learns.
Ski across the flow
of the high desert
on a pair of burning feet.
Let the sage be your guide,
let dry be the cry
of any hawk. A car
does you no good here.
The sky is so blue
it could melt diamonds.
Thin air squeezes ink
from the pen until
your hands are bloody.