Desert Women.
Desert women know about survival.
Fierce heat and cold have burned and thickened our skin.
Like cactus we've learned to horde.
To sprout quick roots.
To seem asleep, yet wake at the scent of softness in the air.
To hide pain and loss by silence.
No branches wail or whisper our sad songs,
safe behind our thorns.
Don't be deceived.
When we bloom, we stun.