My hands grip the metal barrier in anticipation,

my brindle Merrell hiking boots hold tightly onto the concrete beneath me.

The air smells of sweltering sulfur as steam rises into the clear blue sky,

it’s name is Old Faithful. 

Down below a reaction worth waiting for boils,

tourists around me laugh while holding their cameras, ready to capture the perfect moment.

Water travels deep into the earth, searching for rock heated by flowing magma.

As soon as the water makes the connection, it hurries back upward for the well awaited performance. 

The thermal feature erupts into the air causing me to jump back,

a smile spreads from ear to ear  across my face as surrounding people applaud Old Faithful’s arrival.

My heart, geothermally warmed by her presentation as she gracefully falls from the sky

and seeps back into the porous rock, preparing for her next act.