The Desert Is After

The desert is after,
after life,
after us,
after thought and speech,
after silence and death.

When the black crow sits skillfully still
And the aimless butterflies
Dance fearlessly,
These glowing sands
Become windows,
Lessons for the foolish drivers of man,
Schooling for the luminous self,
Our star-flung propellers,
Denied for mammal
Answers to be remembered
In the after,
of the desert.