Desert Exposure

I used to jump in my car some Saturday mornings, drive to Ascension to have lunch and then move on to Casas Grandes. Or I might spend my day in Juarez, which had lots of marketplaces, both inside and … more

By Marjorie Lilly | 4/1/21

Monoceros, The Unicorn

If you have never seen a unicorn, all you need to do is look halfway up in our southern sky. Just above Canis Major and its brilliant star Sirius, you will find the constellation of Monoceros, the … more

By Bert Stevens | 4/1/21

Bigger on the Inside

Whether watching your nanny pull an umbrella from her carpet bag or traveling in time and relative dimension in space (TARDIS) accompanying an alien with two hearts, the concept of something being … more

By Elva K. Österreich | 4/1/21

Music remains very much a part of our lives

During this last year, we have been able to listen to our favorite recordings as before. The pandemic, however, has precluded the possibility of many in-person performances and gatherings in which music figures prominently. more

By Rabbi Karol | 3/4/21

Desert Exposure readers write

I was surprised and excited at the prospect of wheelchair-using mini figurines for Dungeons and Dragons and while I was playing World of Warcraft this evening, I made the mistake of looking for resources on representation in a game that I love. more

3/1/21

Whining our Way Through the Pandemic

How long has it been now that we’ve had to wear these scratchy masks and fear for our lives every time we buy groceries? Six months? Twenty years? Every week is the same, so how are we … more

By Sheila Sowder | 3/1/21

End of Watch

The morning of Friday, Feb. 5, I drove U.S. 70 from Las Cruces to Tularosa. The whole way, across the desert, two counties, three cities and two military installations, flags were at half-staff. … more

By Richard Coltharp | 3/1/21

Learning What’s Important

Sometimes I feel my life is an episode of “The Wonder Years.” Like Kevin Arnold, the teenager whose life is the center of the show, I can hear myself narrating my thoughts. It seems … more

By Abe Villarreal | 3/1/21

Dad’s New Dog

My father’s best friend recently left us for that great boneyard in the sky. After a short period of mourning, he told us he wanted to adopt a new one. Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! Bark! … more

By Jim and Henry Duchene | 3/1/21

Get Over It

As the 31st year since two children, their father and another were murdered at the Las Cruces Bowling Alley slips by, Anthony Teran, brother of Steve Teran who died Feb. 10, 1990, with his daughters, … more

By Elva K. Österreich | 3/1/21

Falconry

“My falcon now is sharp and passing empty; and till she stoops she must not be fully gorged, for then she never looks upon her lure, another way I have to man my haggard to make her come and … more

By Sheila Sowder | 2/1/21

‘A Horse’s Prayer’

Like so many people over the past year of living life mostly at home, we’ve been staring at a closet full of boxes that seem to have been there forever. In our case, these boxes date back to … more

By Scott Thompson | 2/1/21

Horologium, The Pendulum Clock

Straddling our southern horizon, the constellation Horologium, the Pendulum Clock, occupies an area of 249-square degrees, making it 58th in size among the 88 official constellations. About a quarter … more

By Bert Stevens | 2/1/21

Turning around in ‘21

As everyone’s least favorite year, 2020, turns into ’21, many are hopeful, and others are cautiously optimistic. Still others are downright pessimistic, worried about the economy and its … more

By Richard Coltharp | 12/31/20

Creating Connections

Nothing is highlighted more from 2020 than the need to make connections and keep the connections we already built going into 2021. Then, we need to act on them. The coronavirus pandemic has given … more

By Elva K. Österreich | 12/31/20

Getting Jiggy After 50

There’s an ancient curse. I’d say where it comes from, but I’m not a racing enthusiast. It goes, “May you live in interesting times.” 2020 was an interesting year. … more

By Jim and Henry Duchene | 12/31/20

Hiking and Birding and Old People Dancing

More than 339 species of birds have been spotted in Grant County. In the Gila River Habitat Management Unit (along the Gila River), at least 200 species have been documented. Common black hawks, … more

By Sheila Sowder | 12/31/20

Esperanza Lozoya and Rode Tapia, both working at Luz de Esperanza food bank.

A Quiet World

As the United States braces for another, more extreme, onslaught of the Corona virus, so does Mexico.When I drove down to Palomas on a Saturday in Mid-November, I was amazed by the absence of traffic … more

By Marjorie Lilly | 12/3/20

A Quiet Season

My father died this year. It was before we heard those strange words – coronavirus, social distancing, community spread. I am honored and grateful that I was able to travel to Connecticut and … more

By Elva K. Österreich | 12/3/20

Some Things Never Change

When I visited Estonia with my aunt in 2009 it was under the burden of history. My grandmother had always hated the color red, the color of invaders, murderers – the Germans, the Russians. She … more

By Elva K. Österreich | 11/2/20