In the summer, we drink iced coffee
when it is still 90 degrees before dawn.
We study the forecast and plan our day:
walk the dogs by 5:30 a.m., complete errands early.
Get home safe.

I worry constantly about the power grid.
If it fails, do we survive 120 degrees with no AC?
And I obsess about drought
scorching native plants, silencing the birds.
We are running out of water.

The sun beats down on us and
my eyes reflect the damage.
My skin is brown and dry.
All day I crave ice cream and
the waves of the ocean.
All day I remember
deep forests and
what it felt like
to walk in the rain.