Right now in the Sonoran Desert, rain won’t be our guest any time soon. We are in the midst of high summer temperatures. The temperature in my hometown of La Quinta is currently 113 degrees at 4:58 pm. Recent days have been even hotter and there are hotter ones to come. The daylight hours are made of heady stuff. Ah, but the nights! We have had some spectacular night skies. All the better to see Neowise, the new comet.

Neowise image courtesy of the Los Angeles Times

This new comet has made many of us skywatchers. Its namesake is the Neowise space telescope that first spotted the newcomer to the skies on March 27, 2020. Photographers around the world have captured spectacular photos of Neowise. These are especially nice to see if, like me, you haven’t stepped out to see the comet for real.

Whether you’re watching for rain and praying for cooler temperatures or enjoying a sighting of the new comet, here is a piece called “Skywatcher.” It was inspired by a watercolor of the same name by artist Lynn Centeno, and by the beauty and imagery of Navajo mythology. The piece just seems rather timely right now. Enjoy. 

Skywatcher

Do you watch
the heavens
for nature’s signs?

Do you see wisps
of clouds drift high
to fetch the storm?

Do you spy a bolt
of lightning from
mighty Thunderbird’s beak?

Do you hear the great avian’s
wings flap their
thunderous boom?

Do you behold
Tsohanoai step from the storm
with Sun on his back?

Do you glimpse
a rainbow, a promise
of hope in the new day?

Carol Mann 2020

(Tsohanoai – sue a new i)

“Skywatcher” by Artist Lynn Centeno