Mike Humfreville
Super Nomad
Posts: 1148
Registered: 8-26-2003
Member Is Offline
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Rains
Rains
It seldom does rain in our part of Baja, the Bahia de Los Angeles, or the other east-coast central-peninsula villages. They, both the villages and
the rains, are few and far between; and they are usually small; small in population and in measurable amounts of rain. The land is very dry and the
settlements sparse. I have been paying a small attention to cactus as I have more attention to focus on here, at times. I have the availability of
whatever it takes to observe and ponder. I like to do those things and in that order.
Some of the cacti have shapes that readily enable almost elastic expansion. I can?t find the correct term as my cactus book is too far to the south
and I am north of the frontera for just a moment.
The cacti I refer to are ones that have accordion-like circumferences. You can look at them and imagine how they could absorb, breathe, through what
I would think of as capillary action, a great deal of infrequent, momentarily-available rain water in a short period and expend it to their
extremities, whatever those might be, over an extended dry period and as they know best.
Then I read of and have forever experienced Elephant Trees. They are balsawood-like. They make poor firewood. This probably serves well for their
survival. I know just from common sense that, even though there are several species, they are designed to absorb water when it is available, to
dispense it with care for the core like the cacti, the soul, of the entire tree. When there is no water for a period where the cacti or tree cannot
support all its responsibilities, its limbs, tributaries, how does it determine which subordinate elements to shut down? There is a basic principle
out there, something that must be known to the plant that I don?t know. How will I ever be able to figure it out? It?s such a vague question and
most won?t care. But some will.
The more we understand of our world, of our universe, the more we can put our heads and hearts into other organic and even non-organic elements, the
more we can help. Help, I ask myself? What are we helping?
Who knows? But it gets me through the day. And what does it hurt to think of other living beasts and what we think of as rocks and sand?
How did we get here and how do we now all work together? How can we improve our systems?
A big question, I think.
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: optimistic
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Mike-----
Very good point. If you read the journals and books about the prospectors in the Southwest USA (and in Mexico, I bet) you can see that these guys
figured out how to survive in the desert really rapidly, or they did not make it. What took plants a gazillion years to figure out, they did in a
matter of a few years.
Still, the way we all adapt to our environment (if we want to survive) is amazing, and your points are well taken.
Nicely done. Keep your observations coming. 
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eetdrt88
Senior Nomad
Posts: 986
Registered: 2-20-2005
Location: Az/Ca/Baja
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yea,i gotta admit...
when i'm out there in the that vast open desert and i see those grandiose cardon cactus and boojums i kind of salute them just knowing how long they
have been out there and what they have survived to live that long,its actually a humbling experience just being there....ha,thats got me thinking i'm
in need of another humbling experience soon,very soon
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