Two weeks ago, on Saturday morning, I was playing around with spell with flickr and uploaded the Starfish post. It was already very hot and I felt that all we needed to do was get through the day; a cool change was predicted for Sunday.
I went outside and looked at the tree branches being blown about by the wind. The wind felt dangerous, it was strong and I knew the temperature was expected to reach, perhaps exceed, 43 degrees. I noticed that the leaves on the pot plant next to the front door had dried to a crisp. It was like the plant had been placed in an oven.
A friend rang to ask me about my fire plan. Our plan is to leave early. She had been listening to the reports on the radio and suggested that we implement our plan. We made sure our two cats were in the house, ready to go, then collected some things together and put them in the car. Around this time I looked up and saw that the sun was red.
Our neighbour came over and required help finding their cat.
We saw leaves and pieces of bark floating high in the sky and drifting down to earth slowly. It felt eerie. I picked up a leaf that had already landed. It was burnt. It was black.
My daughter found their cat. We packed a couple of other things and left the house.
Our neighbour had told us that there was a road closure on the main road due to a fire. We would have to go a different way. The road we took had a couple of CFA men warning us of a fire that was approaching. My eyes were on the road, but my daughter saw the flames in the paddock.
A friend who stayed in town said that he could see the red glow of the fire on the ridge behind our house, then suddenly the wind changed and the fire stopped there.
Today I went for a walk with my camera. First I took a photo in my backyard.
View to the ridge from my backyard.
I walked to a place where I could get a view of the side of the same ridge.
Our house was untouched. Others were burned to the ground.
These people are cleaning up. The man drove through a wall of fire to get out. It is not an experience he wants to repeat.
This is their apple tree. He said the apples were green. It reminded me of a sentence in a book by Ursula Le Guin, “The fruits roasted on the branches of the trees.”
Road sign.
I took many photos of things that the fire destroyed, then, when I turned and started walking home, I spotted these green acorns on the ground. They seemed to send a message of hope.
A Quiet Cabin 