Weeping Resin - Santa Monica Mountains, CA

This week I have been driving through burnt areas close to Los Angeles and interviewed people for radio stories I already produced or will produce in the coming days.

This is a new way for me to express thoughts and feelings about what I see and hear

The peaceful lake

Indian summer colors, small boats on the shore

Sun rays on water ripples like fireflies

Dancing on reflections of burnt soil

No birds. No bees. No butterflies. A rabbit

On fireshaved hills looking for cover

 

Mai and her eagle feather left behind

Her hand on the house for the last time

A whisper to its ghost

Ancestors' treasures saved

Eagle feather bustle, rug, book, gold rimmed glasses

Hearts and faces in naked rocks

 

The view from the mountaintop

Carcasses of cars and homes and lives

Caution tape and traffic cones

Toxic fumes hiding in HD vision air

More than fifty shades of black

Between them a green oasis. No mirage

 

The writer's refuge at the ocean

Two lounge chairs floating between surf and sky

A gardener and his men saved the home of memories and new beginnings

Never felt so blessed

Never felt so grateful

Never felt so indebted to another human being

 

The tree on the side of the road

So strong

Weeping resin on bark

Black as coal

Reaching to the sky

Smoke and ashes on my tongue

 

If you want to help Mai recreate her home, please go here.

And this is a great place to support victims of the fire in Southern California: Las Virgenes Fire Relief (Link no longer available)

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