Arizona Sunrise | Carlyle R. Phelps

Arizona Sunrise:

My alarm goes off at 4:30,
And it hits like a haboob each mornin’.
When I force myself through the haze,
The day shouts, “step right up,”
Through a quiet cup of coffee,
And an Arizona sunrise.

Thank you, Lord, for another day—
Another chance to repent and to pray—
Another display of wonder steaming up my windowpane.
I sigh, not quite happy, not quite sad—
Enthralled, is what comes to mind,
Watchin’ the purple and blue Arizona sunrise.

Starin’ out east from the south west—
When it’s finally cardigan weather in the mornin’,
Silent foxes of light maneuver up my matted sleeves—
It won’t be but an hour ‘till that pelt drapes my chair,
But in the moment, my wooly arms participate
In the beauty of another singular Arizona sunrise.

Beauty is where form and function perform—
And right exactly at that point,
The form is the horizon—the function is the Sun.
They put on quite the show under the big-top sky,
What with a spotlighted great white elephant cloud
Balancing on one leg of the Arizona sunrise.

The Sun toes the tightrope of the hills,
Teetering ever so deliberately for the thrill of it—
The trees and cacti gasp in amusement,
And the desert flowers lean forward in their dusty seats,
And every shade spectates from the grandstand,
And I’ve a ringmaster view of this Arizona sunrise.

The greatest show on earth, my friends—
And it’s right there waitin’ for ya.
Punch that alarm clock ticket,
Say your gratitudes and take your concessions.
Get up with those animals going about their duties—
‘Cause there’s true beauty in your respective sunrise.

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