Cactus and pine: Songs of the Southwest

This collection offers a lyrical pilgrimage across the American Southwest, where desert spires, pine‑clad mountains and winding rivers become characters in their own right. The poet’s voice moves from the stark silence of the arid canyons to the rustling chorus of forested hills, weaving together the rugged terrain with the lives of the soldiers, priests, cowboys and dreamers who have crossed it. Each piece feels like a whispered story told around a campfire, celebrating both the grandeur of the landscape and the quiet resilience of those who call it home.

The book is organized as a series of short songs and poems, each anchored to a specific place—Santa Fe Trail, the Colorado River, an old Tucson house, the pine of the Mogollon, and countless other landmarks. Through vivid imagery and a mythic tone, the verses explore themes of love, loss, hope and the relentless pull of the frontier, inviting listeners to hear the Southwest’s timeless echo without ever revealing its ultimate resolutions.