Autumn 2011/Summer 2012

Parched earth, long neglected

By rain’s soft caress.

Grasses wait, tinder dry,

Longing.

 

Heavy gray clouds build,

Swollen with promised rain,

Then brush busily past,

To another place, another job

Behind they leave strikes of rejection,

Hot wind of loneliness,

Smoldering flame of doubt,

Reckless spark of anger.

 

Lightning bolts on wet ground

Die quickly.

Scorched earth carefully watched

Burns little.

 

But drought and storm,

Sadness and carelessness

Create an inferno that blackens

Blue skies of naiveté.

 

Blazes of hopelessness

Fanned by ego’s hot wind

Run along ridgetops

Out of control.

Orange flames jump

Treetop to treetop, haphazard,

Feeding hungrily on each mistake

Larger with every imperfection.

Deadfall of the past,

Left to litter the forest floor,

Now feeds the wildfire,

Creates a maelstrom of hurt and revenge.

Blame matters little

As the fire rages –

There is no control,

Only humble efforts to contain.

 

Time clocks, schedules,

Goals, plans, appointments –

The fire consumes the superfluous,

And burns down to the bones.

Those who battle the blaze

Lose themselves in the effort;

Surrendering ego,

They become heroic.

 

Fire kills -- cattle trapped in draws;

Wildlife choked by smoke;

A beloved daughter;

Innocent trust.

Also dead – pine-beetle infested forest;

Sagebrush choking out grass;

Beloved egos;

Carelessness.

Fire scars the land,

Blackens it beyond recognition;

Burns trees and buildings,

Until only sacred ground remains.

But land scarred by fire

Will resurrect:

Green meadows where once thick timber,

Simple joy where once resentment.

 

People threatened by flames

Breathe relief at rain’s soft kiss,

Receive each calf, each flower, each smile

Grateful for what remains.

Mineral-laden water in burning cottonwoods

Hardens to porous,  gray rock.

Skin scarred by scrapes and cuts

Grows back stronger, more resilient.

Hearts scorched by fire

Emerge gray and sober;

Tested by the flames,

They grow resilient, then joyful.

 

In mountain forests consumed by flame,

Seeds of lodgepole pine rest in rich ground.

Exploded from cones during the inferno’s blaze,

They promise new life with the spring.