The Poets of Terrascope

From Dirk

The Earth here is moving, rocks folded and torn
Fault lines are showing; sediments worn
But Erin said it best "it's geologists porn"

From pizza to Chipotle, chicken to PB and jelly
Your belly never will be full, you'll just be full of belly

Eat your burrito and get in the van
We've got to leave Vegas as fast as we can

So many stories beneath the grey beard
All of the warning signs he never feared
No wonder we followed him even though he
Was the only one wand'ring where we weren't s'posed to be

I've heard there are only two things he likes:
    geology and surprises
He won't say where we'll travel each day
    but explains how each mountain rises
He usually knows where we're going (which
    is good 'cause none of us do)
But when he gets lost he will just keep on
    making those turns in the shape of a U

Her face lights up in wonder, there's a little squeal of glee
Every time we're looking at them architecturally
Just like Sam and Dwight love every rock and fault and ridge
Linda is ecstatic over every "sexy bridge"

We're MIT students, we can't go without
Puzzles + physics over break in the south
So with battleship bathtubs and monkeys and ice
Our "Safari Ari" is there to oblige

From Ana:
A Monument

The searing sun we felt that burned
it melted all the water
and so we swam in once-filled sea
white van tire rubber
We streaked more colors with our sweat
on already rainbow valleys--
Clayton, Paramint, Searles
and death
textures and layered color streaks
    slowly living, almost breathing
like ours, but wiser, weathering
We whisped by like smooth clay
and harsh sand sound together
all at once, symphony of crunch and dry
As single grains seeped through
impermeable shoes
infinite steps on formations of sand
These were the time-encrusted shapes we saw and made
And 8 letter "U"s we paved as well
    because it's Sam
    because he can
Wispy eyes searching for a giant gem, taking mostly rocks instead
Still, dying, monumental elements
vacation resort? no. time-constrained quest
finding what we search to find from habit
Soon we will leave, but the Southwest will keep
our steady gazes, questions, and echoing steps.