In the high desert
Where the land is wide
And the sky wider
I cross the expanse
On a knife’s edge of asphalt
Buffeted by furious headwinds

Inside my little cockpit of calm and warmth
I sing “Wassiye! Wassiye!”
With Habib Koite
A song of mirth and joy and love

Just as is the song within me
As I navigate existence
Across the expanse of being
And all its many storms