In 1920, six-year-old Edna accompanies her parents to New Mexico to homestead 640 acres. Her father, a tuberculosis victim, hopes to restore his health while doing what he loves: running a ranch. This is the story of a family's struggle to tame an arid land and remain together while a disease ravages one of its members. It is the story of a small child who grows to love the stark and beautiful high desert country even as her parents struggle against adversity. Today Edna oversees ranches in the Tusas River Valley of New Mexico and the San Juan Valley of Colorado. At the age of ninety-two, she visits her beloved Tusas whenever she can.