Wildfire Sunset

Do you remember the first time you noticed wild fire smoke in the atmosphere?  For me, it was during the summer of 2020.  Like so many others I found refuge from the pandemic in nature, spending afternoons hiking wilderness areas.  It was during one of those hikes that I watched wildfire smoke drift in.  The body cannot help but feel the distant destruction and grief as thick smoke floats through the air like a ghost.

And so I ask myself these questions.  How have I contributed to climate change in the past?  How can I minimize my impact on climate change today?  How can I be an effective steward of the environment right here at my doorstep?

This photo was taken at dusk on June 4, 2023.  The spectrum of the sunset was cast upon thick, smoky air from western wildfires in violets, corals and pinks.  And even so, strings of migrating pelicans flew over wetland near my house.  I find it amazing that life continues living the ancient rhythms of migration amidst it all.

Distant wildfires burn

Sunset sings violet-pink

Grief floats, ghost of smoke