Desertscape.
Sand dunes stretched out on all horizons like waves upon the sea. The sand lay in all directions, as far as the eye could see. A world of sand, nothing but sand. It lay undisturbed under the hot yellow sun; only the wind trickled over its surface gently, casting up small sprays of sand
The sky was clear and blue, no clouds could be seen anywhere. The sun beat down mercilessly from high above. It was a small white-yellow dot high up in the sky. On the endless sea of sand there was no cover from its rays. The sun scorched the sand continually. Very few plants survived these extreme conditions. There were a few isolated succulents growing on, and among, the sand.
The most notable of these was the large Welwitschia, which grew along the ground. Its fleshy leaves grew on the ground, and from the center a large stem arose. It would carry beautiful flowers in due time. There was also small desert flowers strewn out on the surface of the sand, that would bloom when the light rains came.
At the present there was no sign of precipitation, neither was there any signs that there might be rain soon. It was a long, hot, dry summer out in the desert. As the sun shone high above, and the light wind stirred the sand, few birds were about in the sky. On the sandy floor of the desert, only a few scattered creatures lived. They were mostly found far apart in the vast outstretched land.
Some desert snakes traversed the sand in sliding motions, in search of prey. The desert fox scuttled along the sand, looking for a tid-bit to scavenge, or perhaps a small creature to catch. The desert rodents hid from these predators during the hot day, and only ventured out in the nights. Insect life flourished out in the sandy world under the hot sun. Scorpions lay in hiding under the rocks, and in burrows in the sand. Desert beetles flew about, and crawled on the sand.
At some places amongst the sand there were scattered outcrops of rocks, and in these regions the rocks lay strewn out in large areas. The rocks were dark black and brown, burnt by millions of years of extreme sun. Here the desert animals found shelter from danger, and the ever-present heat.
These outcrops were only small islands in the sea of sand, an about them the sand stretched out endlessly. The sun beat on unrelenting on the hot caramel sand, as the wind stirred the surface lightly. The sand dunes lay like waves outstretched on a sea of sand. The silence was overwhelming, and only the light wind could be heard, whistling softly over the dunes.
The sun fell as the day closed, casting brilliant hues of light on the expanse of sand. The horizon shone pink and red and purple, as the sun sank away and darkness fell. The stars came out and sprayed the heavens with their dots of bright light. The Milky Way was a banner of stars up in the dark sky.
And still the only sound among the silent sea of sand, was the whistling of the wind over the sand dunes. The desert remained unspoilt and unchanged, as it had for an eternity of time. Time flowed on unchanged within the world of sand.
The End.
JP Brown 15/05/2006.
