Green Bean | Taos, NM

Hooray! We have made it to Taos. Hooray! for days like these. Days when my fingernails are a little bit dirty underneath and the Taosian sun is toasting my skin waxy, rosy, warm; Days when I haven’t showered in a few and the my body begins to smell like a body, not a body camouflaged in flowers and musk; Days when I haven’t changed my clothes and they are starting to wear–really wear–and they seem to slide on and hug all of the curves and bends; Days when the coffee is good but strong and nearly all I’ve eaten; Days when my mind is full on words and feelings and my heart on that deep, penetrating, permeating LOVE!

We slept in the Walmart parking lot last night in Taos. We met a man named Tom who gathers wild sage and juniper and cedar to make smudge sticks and bouquets. His face is leathery and his hands are creative and his eyes are blue blue blue! We gave him a ride to the Taos Plaza. He taught me how to tie the sticks with string. I bought some string the color of sky and bird bathed in the Walmart bathroom.

Then I found some fabulous boots and haggled with a shopkeeper to take them home with me for $15