Poignant

Definition of poignant

1a(1): painfully affecting the feelings : PIERCING

(2): deeply affecting : TOUCHING

b: designed to make an impression : CUTTING

I thought the garbage cans didn’t melt…well two of them did, as you can see by their stance. I think I feel like the melted brown one.

The front portico is nothing but fallen beams . For those of you who spent the night at our front home – The Maples – or enjoyed the Band because they practiced there for years – you might remember the 150 year old fir that we had to take out in the last five years. I thought the stump would be there forever. However nature and a fire had another idea. Burn it into a big hole and let a green maple fall into it. Need a spatula or a water bottle?

What is left of the ghost winery is the ghost…

Surreal – devastating how do you describe this? Nothing but a chimney an outdoor table where the glass shattered but half the chairs are untouched. The bbq looks useable.

A bed stand looking toward the highway, a totally burned barrel with charred agapantha bulbs, a blue hummingbird feeder melted and fallen to the ground. If you want to know what a burned out washer and dryer looks like…there it is!

Need a lawn mower or an ancient water storage tank? The burned out stump leaves an interesting pattern. We had to be careful not to step in a smoldering hole as we went around the huge burning fir.

Past the burned fallen fir the rose garden was well scorched and there is no longer a fence but I think it can be saved. The roses should come back and by then the deer would certainly enjoy them. The first cottage, 4203 was flat but the leftover deck furniture on a little cement block patio was intact…why? How about the left behind barrel that opens to a bar? Good to go! The half wine barrel in front of the cottage is half burned…nice sculpture.

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The cottage on the right, 4205 is just rubble…its on the other side of the fallen little tree. The back patio, the hot water tank and stove looks back up to our standing main house in the smoke. The mail box lies in the ashes but then you can walk up the stairs to the old entry to the back side of the cottage. Stairs to nowhere now! Must be the new name of a song…Stairway to nowhere – does anyone want to write the song?

We had an old barn…lots of wood and things and well, I’ve never spent time up there – never even really walked into it. Can’t believe what is left is a tub…where did it come from?! The well house which had a metal roof had wood sides…it fell to the north…wonder if that’s where the fire came from? Down the hill? Down from the castle? The fence around the propane tank is long gone and we’re in need of a new propane tank. The full smoky shot just looks like a battleground.

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Isn’t it amazing what a huge hole a stump can leave? And the charcoal ember landed in a rock pathway and had nothing to light on fire. I imagine these kind of embers blew from Bell Canyon, across the valley and into our hills!

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The backside of the house by the kitchen–you can note a few burned looking areas and on the far right are fire extinguisher our neighbors contractor must have used. The photo on the right continues on the walk way to the pool. Obviously our seating area on the left is cone. The peppers past the laundry dryer are smokey but not burned and the tomatoes just look in need of water.

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The burned seating area to the left of the walk way and the surviving Palm tree I love! All of these are heading to the still standing pool house!

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The other side of the pool had the fire run through it but the hammock is saved with little bitty holes from embers in it. The pool cover survives and green abounds toward the house.

Truly the most poignant picture. Absolute devastation to the left burning right up to the walkways. The house standing on the right.

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The burned walkway. Looking up the little valley and looking back at the burn…and the green and right up to the house. Quite a blessing.

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Melted yellow jacket catchers. The bottom staircase and light burned beyond recognition but the teak table in front of it has no issues. The barrel next to the back deck is partially burned as you can see by the ivy. Maybe enough water and moisture so it wouldn’t keep burning.

Napa County took this shot. The colors are amazing. The deck post is burned a foot up from the hillside. Little paths of what might be fire lines are blackened. Thank goodness our neighbor’s contractor made sure this post quit smoldering. Above this are two windows in the master bedroom that have cracks from the heat as the fire passed this side of the house.

The cracked windows, the air conditioner and still green at the top of these oak trees! The smoke just makes it all eerier!

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Why does the little watering can have its nozzle melted off? Wanna play golf?

The houses behind are untouched. Since they are boarded up an unoccupied, I’m sure the owners wondered why they couldn’t have been destroyed!

A pan across the street with the homes on the left gone and all the green on the right.

From the top of our property line you can see the valley to the east then our neighbor’s home and rock wall which might have saved the house over to our side of the fence on the right. Things are burned and things are green.

Dark days are just as much a part of our life as are the days graced with sunshine. They show us a different perspective of our world, while helping us appreciate the moments of illumination that inevitably follow. A rainy day with clouds help to clear the air, washing away stagnation. We are still awaiting rain which might occur this weekend. With all the devastation it still is hard not to feel gloomy or think that 2020 has been ruined with all the smoke fires and covid hanging over us. If we can all remember that these shades of grey won’t last forever, and that hidden behind the clouds is the blue sky, maybe the beauty of our lives are playing a game of peek-a-boo with us all.