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I had the privilege of serving as Artist-in-Residence at Petrified Forest National Park from September 8 – September 21, 2007. I'd like to thank Scott Williams and all the Petrified Forest Staff for their help and encouragement during my stay. What follows are a few musings on my stay at the park.

Of Petrified Forest I will remember…
• Being lifted by a cool morning breeze
• Rubbing course grains of sand between my fingers
• Walking through a field of petrified pieces — kicking a few with my over-sized feet — and hearing the distinct glass-like clink of one piece against another
• The sound of air rushing around feathers as a crow passes overhead
• Pressing my hand on a flat-top boulder that has spent the day soaking in the sun’s energy.
• Laying on the ground (carefully) and being blessed by incense of sage.
• Following the trail of the milky way at midnight
• The glorious colors of quartz, wildflowers, and sunrise
• The rich colors of limestone, clay, grasses, and the Puerco River after a heavy rain
• Slipping on the rolling stones of the badlands
• Watching “stink” beetles scamper over sand hills
• The horn of the Santa Fe RR
• At night, through my kitchen window, watching the constant stream of headlights on highway 40 and wondering what stories these 75 mph people have and do we really need all the stuff that those trucks are carrying.

 I always imagined that when Jesus went to the wilderness to pray, it was because there were fewer distractions there. But He wasn’t escaping, He was was in the wilderness to be blessed by it’s riches.

Bob dJ