It’s summer in the southwest
     when talk about the changing weather gets hot
     when resistance weakens and drought-spiked 
          fevers linger longer and longer
     when surface water shimmers 
          reflect our own empty promises
     when even Russian thistle give up 
          their bony hold, tossing skeletons into the wind
     when temperatures bring a rain of feathers and spark wildfires
best to see those flames for what they are: consequences of us 
making light of it