December 18, 2010
If you want to feel whole again
sit with the creek and its meanderings
through the old sycamores here
before the Europeans landed
from another world
with new constraints and foreign religions
made to fit people and landscapes.
With this vein full in her flesh
flowing beneath green canopies
from shadows into light,
the canyon drinks
from yesterday’s dark clouds
as it reaches for the sky—
yearning for the source.
Lifeblood of the Bird and Animal People,
of the Yokuts and cattlemen,
it flows the same
when and where it wants—
washing the weak downstream,
yet bringing solace and sustenance
to those who can wait.
drycrikjournal 
a rousing lullaby for daydreaming!
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Good! and thank you 🙂
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Good morning John and Robin
What a beautiful thing to see! Seasons greetings and a warm hello from Alberta!
Cheers,
Jose Hertez and family
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Thanks, Joe. I thought the 2010 photo of what the creek could be would make us feel better. The canyon is thirsty, nothing by the house yet.
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This truly is a beautiful thing, and not just the photo which is wonderful on its own. Your hearts must be singing to see this.
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Unfortunately it’s a dated song, but we’re still waiting for recent rains to make it downcanyon.
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Not so dry. What a lovely scene and words to accompany it.
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Thanks, Jann. Recent rains are a major game changer. I thought a photo of Dry Creek in 2010 running about 2,000 cubic feet/second would help our imaginations, let us think outside the dry box.
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We’ve got a similar thing going here in central Texas. Hope the rain gods smile upon you this holiday season.
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Beautiful – both the tribute to the creek and the picture!
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Thanks, Shirley 🙂
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Looking good. More rain occurring now in the Bay Area
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We expect a little more this afternoon and tomorrow, Tim. Not too many puddles left after 2.42″ Thursday and Friday — the ground is thirsty, we’ll gladly take whatever we get.
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Hear Hear
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how much more rain will you need to get back to 2010?
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That’s a tough question. Here in the foothills we received about 50% of normal rainfall in the past two years, the nine-year average is 14.5″ to 17″. The foothills are resilient where the timing of rainfall is often more important than the amount.
Agriculture in the San Joaquin Valley may never recover, receiving less than 50%, but also subject to a severe overdraft of groundwater and continued well drilling at about 1/2 million bucks a pop, going deeper and deeper.
Several years of a heavy Sierra Nevada snowpack will assuage the situation for awhile by adding more surface water flows to augment groundwater supplies, an ever-increasing and ongoing problem.
There’s no easy answer for agriculture in the richest region of the world, but farming practices and crops will have to change to continue farming in California for the long term.
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By the way did you get a chance to read “the new Pony on my blog. https://bandeaux.wordpress.com
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That’s a very disturbing outlook. Lovely photo, I hope it works some magic for you, & the poem also resonates swith me as an Australian – similar histories and battles with drought.
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