Oasis of Mara (2007)
Joshua Tree National Park, CA

What was it like living here one hundred, two hundred years ago?  It must have been a joy to come down out of the mountains or up from the low desert to enjoy the ponds of life-giving water and the cool shade.  The Serrano called the place Mara meaning “the place of little springs and much grass.”  They planted a new palm each time a son was born, twenty-nine in one year. When we look at these palms we see the shimmering play of light on their glistening skirts.  But for the Serrano the palms were clothing, shelter, food, cooking implements and housing.  The little springs have dried up now and the grass is gone because we’re drinking the water in the water table.  The pond water is artificially maintained by the park service.  But on a clear spring morning you can still catch a glimpse of what it must have been like one hundred years ago.