A Desert of Life

Inside of me I thought
 Was an empty, barren desert
In which, or so I used to think,
Even if you walked for millions of miles,
You would find nothing
But, 
If you did find a cactus,
Or a sweet desert flower full in bloom,
A new, young lizard,
Or a single solitary bird, flying forever onward
 Searching the blazing sky,
You would have known of some emotion
Stirring the sands of my desert
Maybe waves of despair
Washing away the old sands 
And replacing them with sadder, 
Bluer sands
Soothing, silver rains,
Healing plants after a long drought 
Burning rays of anger,
Tossing the sands every which way
Changing my desert into a world of confusion
 Icy blows of disappointment
Transforming my desert into a land of endless snow and miserable nights
But suddenly the snow starts to melt
Turning the cold, lonely iceland 
Into a warm, golden land of life, love, and warmth

Now I know that my desert is not barren, 
Nor empty or lifeless,
But forever stirring and changing

Inside of me is a desert
My desert.
- Ameesha Sampat (Age 11 years), March 1, 1999. 
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