Out of TownerIn Honor of the Land
by Ashley Iguanta
How living in the small town of 29 Palms, California, helped my writing evolve.
When I drove into 29 Palms this April, it rained. For those who have lived in the Mojave
for a long time, rain is a miracle. To me, a Floridian, rain is a beautiful work of art that I
know well, a work of art that I am grateful for. On my drive into town, I remember the
way each rainbow’s root touched the bare earth. In the Mojave, there’s land everywhere
you look. Bare land, pure Earth. And then there are cacti and mesquite and other gorgeous
forms of life that grow, unobtrusively, with gentle spaces between them.
This bare Earth, these loose plants, drew me to the Mojave. Here, the landscape brings
ease to my mind, my heart, and even my body. I went to 29 to write, to finish my newest
book of poems, Bomb, which focuses on the human heart, how it recovers from abandonment. When I am in silence for long stretches of time, when my yoga practice is strong,
and when I care for my body by hiking in nature, my writing thrives. When I dive deeply
into yoga philosophy, into devotion, my writing thrives. I knew I could do these things in
the quiet, open desert.
When I walked into my rental, my skin was wet with desert rain. The sky, pink and glorious, covered me with a mist that smelled metallic, sweet. There was so much I wanted
to do here: I wanted to explore the unmarked dirt roads, hike the mountains, become
friends with a gifted yoga teacher who I had yet to meet. But for that night, I rested, and
I watched the sky turn a deep, dark purple. When I woke, the first thing I saw when I
stepped outside was this: blue sky and one colossal mountain.
Glow, (Mojave Desert), digital photograph
When I landed in 29 Palms, I didn’t know how long I would stay. I ended up staying for
two months. After my devotional yoga practice, I would write. And every time I came to
my pen, I asked myself, “What do I want this poem to teach me?” and I would pray for
Fish, Cholla Cactus Garden (Joshua Tree National Park), digital photograph
Model: Cassandra Davis, owner of Wonder Wellness Yoga in Twentynine Palms, California
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