Written by & Voice Over by CLS Sandoval

Produced by Matthew Toffolo

Editor & Visual Design by Steve Rizzo

POEM:

DEATH VALLEY, CA – Park visitors found the body of David Kelleher on June 14, 2022 in Death Valley National Park. Kelleher appears to have been walking from Zabriskie Point toward Furnace Creek after running out of gas.–NPS June 15, 2022, Abby Wines.

His body was only 30 feet from the highway,
but he couldn’t have seen it
due to the terrain and a mesquite tree

He had traveled two and a half miles
from his car lost in thought

A ranger had cited him
for off road driving while lost in thought
in California’s unforgiving Death Valley

His tank was near empty

Rather than wait in his vehicle
in the unrelenting heat
he walked away lost in thought
leaving a note
out of gas
for visitors to discover when it was too late

Surrounded by nature’s
least forgiving landscape
he was lost
in his thoughts
of trying to find anyone to save him