Author: Karly Foster | Published: July 27, 2024 | Category: Look Back
This article originally appeared in The Bulletin on June 28, 2024.
An Oregon ecological haven.
The McDermitt Caldera is a vibrant ecological haven that straddles the Oregon-Nevada border in Southeastern Oregon. Supporting intact sagebrush habitats, the caldera is rich with native wildflowers and bunchgrasses and laced with desert streams essential to the fish and wildlife that live there. This long, shallow volcanic depression is home to greater sage-grouse, pronghorn, mule deer, golden eagle, the threatened Lahontan cutthroat trout and even California bighorn sheep.
Unfortunately, the Caldera is also under threat from industrial development promoted by transnational mining companies — a proposal that could devastate habitat, disrupt restoration efforts, damage cultural resources, drain aquifers and degrade recreational experiences. Lessons learned from the damage caused by mining projects around the country remind us of the importance of carefully considering the impacts of any proposed mine, and especially in the fragile High Desert. Oregon Natural Desert Association (ONDA) remains steadfast in its commitment to safeguarding the caldera and working closely with local communities and partners to ensure the long-term health and vitality of the area.
Written during a crisp spring visit, the poem below aims to capture the immense beauty, richness and playful spirit of Oregon’s unassuming McDermitt Caldera and inspire you to visit the area and learn more about the how you can get involved in ONDA’s conservation campaign.
Visit ONDA.org for more information on how to experience and protect the wonders of Oregon’s High Desert lands, waters and wildlife.
The Desert. The Trickster.
The Desert is a Trickster.
First, she tricks you into thinking she holds little wealth
Cloaking under the name “desert”, as in desolate, deserted, deficit
Others call her barren, cold, dark, lonely, harsh
Her bounty and beauty, masked by this narrative, imposed
Only revealing her true self to those who take the time to see, who make the effort to know
But if you do, be warned:
Her power is unyielding — a bond you cannot release, a love so great your heart swells, eyes tear, body heavy
She is now a part of you, your Relative.
The Desert. The Trickster.
She signals a sound to your right as you walk across her body. You pause.
No sound, now? Suddenly a chuckle (hehehe)
Did I hear something? Was I the one laughing?
She cackles louder, a coyote laugh
She has you in her claws now. Your mind filled with the validity of your senses.
The Desert. The Trickster.
Just as you curse her name for her mind games, she trips you on a rock
You stumble. On the ground now ready to rise in spite
Lifting your weary head only to see the most enchanting bed of agates, obsidian, jasper, opal
Sparkling, beaming, reflecting
An entire world of wonder beneath your feet. You hadn’t cared to look before.
The Desert. The Trickster.
Your focus now Earthside; a living forest beneath the sagebrush canopy revealed to you
Flowers of blue, orange, red, yellow, purple, pink, white. A rainbow of joy overcomes you.
The ground shifting now — thousands of busy bodies dutifully tasked, scurrying between the deep canyons of crusted dirt
Holding entire ecosystems, whole worlds, within each small valley of earth
The Desert. The Trickster.
Shifting clouds now envelop Sun’s heat
Raindrops splatter, thunderbirds calling, winds driving faster
The cloud shadows play and dance on the mountain peaks, the folds of earth — snow-capped
You hadn’t noticed the water held there in suspense
How can one place carry so much polarity?
Just when you run for shelter
Skies blue, birds chirping, sun enlightening. A change of heart.
The Desert. The Trickster.
The aftermath of rains run in streaming, glistening ribbons, seeking low ground
You follow. A creek welcomes you now.
Willows with their resilient bows swaying, sharing whispers of the sodden shores
Frogs ribbit, crickets chirp, meadowlarks sing, lizards rush
Unafraid now, storms calmed, skies opened. You feel so held.
The Desert. The Trickster.
The very silts, sky, sun, waters, you suspected as bleak
Proves to you once more her magical prowess and you fall deep, deeper, in gratitude of her gifts
Into the endless record of time, stories, memories, beings, she holds within her body, bones, layers
Feeling called now, moved, to protect her shifting ways
Her cleverness. Her duality. Her charm. Her might. Forever.
The Desert. The Trickster.
—Karly Foster is the Campaign Manager at Oregon Natural Desert Association, a nonprofit organization that protects and restores Oregon’s high desert public lands and waters.