Golden Torch, by Cynthia Anderson

Cynthia Anderson lives in the Mojave Desert near Joshua Tree National
Park. Her poems have appeared in numerous journals, and she is the author
of seven poetry collections, the most recent being Waking Life. She coedited
the anthology A Bird Black As the Sun: California Poets on Crows & Ravens.
www.cynthiaandersonpoet.com

About the poem:
For over 25 years I lived on California’s Central Coast, where I indulged in my love of
the desert by amassing a large collection of cacti and succulents. The annual bloom
of the golden torch was a much-anticipated event. My husband and I retired to the
Mojave Desert in 2009.