RED MOUNTAIN

The city of El Paso, Texas, wraps around the Franklin Mountains like a “U”. At the edge of the suburbs against the mountain I parked my parent's car and climbed up the over 3,000 ft. high mountain with my portable easel, paints, water, lunch, and a blank canvas. Within a few hundred feet, over a ridge, it is suddenly silent. The city has vanished. I use my fingers to form a rectangle and choose my composition, set up my easel, and begin. I have until dusk to finish. I need light to climb back down.