It was that quintessential cactus symbol of the southwest. I hadn’t known its name nor its unique character, but these saguaros (sah-wah-ros) were truly remarkable. Many of these older saguaros would reach up around 40ft tall and some, were even recorded up to 60ft and beyond. Regardless of their height, their structure is something truly to note. We are so used to seeing and touching trees with their armor of thick barks, but these cacti wore an almost dense, sponge-like skin, studded from head to toe with threatening spikes. Adding to character, the typical long and numerous branches on oaks or pines we often see, hardly parallel to the shorter, 2 to 7, curved arms of these gumby-like looking characters.
It was a hot June day as we hiked through Arizona’s Saguaro National Park’ desert landscape. Everywhere you looked there was another unique saguaro to take in. Each boasted their own expression and gesture. Some still wore their dark-pink cactus flowers from the recent season. To me they looked like crown wreaths, Frida Kahlo-esque adornments crowning themselves as they basked in the intense sun.
Dust wafted behind us as we trudged up the narrow, rock-lain
trail to the top of the mountain. The parched earth crunched beneath our
shoe tread and all around oozed a dry steaminess of thick desert air. From
the mountaintop, the view revealed an expansive valley patterned with
innumerable saguaros and succulent shrubbery filler, while the crisped, desert
land gleamed light golden in the sun’s reflection. Dry heat around us seemed
to barely affect our energy levels as we gazed out onto the horizon. This
was the life of the Saguaro; this was the desert land they called their home.
This was the American southwest.
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Christin Marie
Exploring the world through words and adventure. Enjoy this blog with stories, poems, and reflections from a novelist and tango-dancing, yacht chef abroad.
Christin Marie is a Florida native and London-based novelist, poet, and blogger whose fiction weaves mysticism, ancient Greek historical myth, and the inner landscapes of the heart into sensory-driven prose. Her poetry is a textured, lyrical exploration of love, longing, spirituality, and transformation. The Rose Temple is her debut romantasy novelette, inviting readers into a richly imagined world where devotion, desire, and destiny converge.
She's the creator of the e-course Radiant Quill: Living and Writing in Your Essence, which helps writers and creatives cultivate a sustainable, soul-led creative flow.
My first published book, Reflections by the Sea, a three-part collection of poetry–reached #20 on the best sellers list for poetry on Amazon, and was later accepted as one of 10 poets published in Page Publishing Poetry Anthology for 2020.
Life should be pleasurable. Take the journey and indulge.
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