Dry Lightning
Desert Whispers: Struggle and Redemption in Curtis Eller's 'Dry Lightning'
Lyrics
Well, it's the first week in August
Setting the scene in the first week of August.
When they leave their skins behind
Suggesting a transformative experience as they shed their skins.
This time of year all the rattlesnakes are strikin' blind
Describing the time when rattlesnakes are aggressive.
But that horse reared back, he got one good kick
A horse gets injured with a powerful kick.
He's staggerin' against his own weight
The injured horse struggles under its own weight.
If you put up a fight your blood start to circulate
Encouraging resistance in difficult situations to stay alive.
And it move through those veins
Describing the circulation of blood like gas through a hose.
Like a gas through a hose
Highlighting a changed state of the horse.
Don't you know that just ain't the same horse that he knows
Emphasizing the difference in the horse due to the struggle.
With his eyes rolled back in his head
Depicting the horse's distress with rolled-back eyes.
And his leg swelled up like a root
Describing the physical swelling of the horse's leg.
Get a bead on that old horse before you shoot
Advising to aim carefully before putting the horse down.
Down by the ocotillo where the yuccas grow tall
Referring to a specific location with ocotillo and yuccas.
Deep in the shadows it's cool and it's dry
Describing a cool and dry place in the shadows.
That's where the poison always crawls
Connecting the cool and dry place with poison, possibly symbolic.
Tie him up to a split rail and wait for the sun to go down
Suggesting restraint by tying the horse to a split rail.
There ain't no point in us getting' up early
Emphasizing the futility of waking up early.
This time tomorrow he'll be gone
Anticipating the horse's departure by the next day.
And there's a slow wind in the dessert
Describing a slow wind in the desert.
And these cloud always look the same
Noting the consistent appearance of clouds in the dry environment.
It's only dry lightning
Introducing the concept of dry lightning without rain.
Don't you know there's never no rain
Emphasizing the absence of rain associated with dry lightning.
Don't you know there's never no rain
Reiteration of the absence of rain with dry lightning.
Don't you know there's never no rain
Final repetition emphasizing the enduring lack of rain.
Comment