A Handful of Sand

Silence creeps along the road, wind 

sweeps grains of sand into groups, 

like expats trapped in a compound 

attempting to sustain themselves.

Working together, eating, talking, sleeping,

engineers and teachers all present 

to earn dollars abroad, then send them

to family, to educate offspring rarely seen.

But the days slide slowly into a small pile,

until they are on top of one another, each 

seeming much the same, a truth emerging: 

sand is bland, and the desert heat degenerative.