Loose Cotton Clothing

Pictures of desert people draped in loose cotton
seemed strange when I lived in an area with four seasons.
For years I’ve seen pictures of them with their turbans
and their burkas, wondering why they hide away
under layers of loose clothing.

 
After this last heat wave their attire makes sense
layers of material to keep the skin cool,
protect it from the sun and occasional sand storm.
Enough cloth to make a little tent to squat under
until the haboob, or large dust cloud, passes.

While skin hardens with the oppression from the sun
and kidneys adjust to the harsh conditions
of drought and famine, we go about our business
and never notice how we are changing,

or when desert attire becomes commonplace
a practical modification for  climate change
restructuring a belief system to fit a god
who offers a scorched earth to survive upon.