The Desert Changed My Life. It Can Change Yours, Too.
It’s a common theme: The desert shapes our lives, but can also change them. And why not? It’s hot, dry, vast, and utterly different from the urban sprawl of the West. It makes up 75% of the U.S. and 70% of the world, and has a culture that is often different, unique, and intriguing. We have the Sahara, the Sahara Desert, and the Southwestern deserts. The American Southwest is home to the Sonoran Desert’s Mesquite and Arizona’s Sonoran Desert, while the Mojave Desert is the California Desert and northern Mexico’s Baja California.
We call it the Southwestern deserts when referring to the three states that border the U.S. Mexico. That’s not to say other parts of the U.S. don’t also have deserts. But when we say Southwestern deserts, we are referring to the desert land mass that spans from northern Mexico to northern California, and extends to Arizona.
“The Southwestern Desert is where the desert began. It is the longest and largest desert in North America. It is an area of remarkable geological and climatic diversity containing an array of plants, animals, and geologic features, including the world’s longest sand dunes.” (The Desert, a National Geographic Image.)
If you are a desert-lover living in any part of the world, this is a place where you feel at home.
On this planet, there’s a desert for you. If you love the mountains, you’ll love the desert. If you love the ocean, you’ll love the desert. This is the place you will be happiest and most satisfied. In fact, if you can stand the heat and the wind, you can still enjoy the desert. But we’re here to talk about the desert in general.
Here is the desert that shapes and defines the lives of so many:
The desert shaped my life, but it
