From the Ashes

Inspired after reading Lucinda Matlock and Chicago, I assigned a Hometown Poem to my advanced placement students. However, for those who know me, I never assign a writing I haven't done myself:


From the Ashes

Riding on weekend hayrides
Bonfires blazing in an orange glow of night
One-armed Saguaros dancing with flying embers
Like cowboys bristling and ready for a fight
Dragging on Camelback Mountain
8 tracks blaring in dashboard lights
Two-armed Saguaros poised and waiting
Like racers setting for the night

Those days were simple long ago
Back in my Sun Devil desert days
Home where more pools than carports dot the desert
Home where more golf courses than malls blanket the sand
Home where nights are often warmer than days
My city, a mythical bird
Guarded by bristled cowboy soldiers
My true Phoenix arisen from
A memory of teenage ash

KT Magalia