Sand storm

Yuki and I had a little adventure tonight while out walking in the neighborhood. We got caught in a gusty, windy, dust storm! I had planned our walk so as to arrive back home when the torrential rains would be released. I was imagining laughing as the rain soaked our bodies and the fresh smell of creosote filled our lungs.
All afternoon I watched the huge white and gray monsoon clouds form in the sky. At first, the warm wind blew strongly, and we walked slowly, so I could practice my walking meditation (Yuki was doing his sniffing meditation). Then the wind picked up.
It whooshed through the dry eucalyptus leaves, tearing bark off the trunks. Clusters of pale yellow mesquite pods shook loose to the ground. The sky was darkening behind us, so I decided it was time to head back. But what I thought was a blanket of rain rolling towards us turned out to be a sand storm.
The air was so dusty and gritty that we had to crouch behind a wall for awhile to let it all blow by. Yuki was getting hit face on from the higher blowing gusts, as well as from the grit and dust being churned up from the ground. At least I have the protection of eyeglasses and could use my free hand to shield my face; Yuki just has his delicate white eyelashes. No wonder camels have long eyelashes.
Here's my new motto: "crouch behind a wall and let the grit go by".