after the fires... Sonoma County
driving up and down dirt roads where one of my son’s friend lost his place and the whole area in which he lived burned....80 acres.... clearing the landscape...
even burned and brown i can imagine its magnificence prior.... and what i hope in the future will recover ... the land and wild landscape...
it is overwhelming to see what Fire can do.... after being here three times since 2017 after the fires and taking images.. and walking amongst the remains..i feel how deeply painful it is.... it's hard to lose a home.. but it's the belonging of memories.... things that are irreplaceable that are so moving........ one can rebuild, but you can not recover.. family albums. and treasures of history from a life time.. to see the remains of just a standing hearth, pictures on a wall and a found mug, or items on the ground charred . it literally takes my breath away.... i stare with disbelief what mother nature can do....
i am humbled.. and yet honored to come ... and bear witness to this tragedy again and again..not forgotten just because the fire was put out...
coming from the North East.. i have never experienced this....
one nite we lost power for a few days bc of gale force winds.. i packed up everything i had put it in the car and was prepared to leave..... it subsided on day two and we were good to go...blue skies , warm temps as if it never happened........ but i can’t imagine living with this.. being on guard and ready during october.. i guess like they do in the islands during hurricane season....
before 2017 there were no fires for many years..... one can’t know if this is what it will be moving forward.... and should one go or stay.. it would be hard to uproot from a community of friends and a life..
me i go home to NY but to see .. witness ... it lasts like a scar
