Feeling anxious, as are most of us in Canberra, and indeed Australia, and have been for months - but today it’s close again. The fires have gone to Emergency warning again. Crews from all over Australia are fighting tirelessly, as are individuals - staring into the unimaginable terror that is an out of control bushfire. An uncontrollable beast that is engulfing our people, our wildlife, our environment, our cultural heritage, and our homes. The fear, grief and heartbreak are palpable. Today I face losses on a personal, professional and community level, and obsessively check the ESA updates. It may not strike today but it will keep looming until the next bout, as it has been doing for months. The South Coast is facing its fifth attack. I am weary, as we all are and I am one of the fortunate ones - it hasn’t struck me personally yet. I still have my loved ones and I still have a home. I have prepared and implemented my Bushfire Action Plan at home and at work. I have packed, unpacked and repacked our bags. My children now carry a gas mask, safety googles, water, wool clothes, food and a torch in their day packs. My family has evacuated from the property that is our heart. I feel paralyzed and impotent with the fear and so worried for our world. This is a climate emergency! I’m an atheist so I don’t pray but as an artist I draw....so I drew. I created a symbolic luck charm for our community. The pinwheel represents turning luck around and is in the colours of our Emergency Services fire trucks. The pink circle represents the pink fire retardant they are currently dropping on our parched land. The blue drop represents much needed rain and the water they are using to douse the flames. The drop is also a heart- our broken yet resilient heart; and a tracing from the 1911 Griffin Plans of Canberra, as is the hexagon- a symbol of our city. The black pattern- reminiscent of burnt trees, is a tracing of ‘Auslan’ for thankyou - how can we ever thank our Emergency Services personal enough for the incredible job they are doing? The ESA and the RFS are nothing short of heroes....And now to more drawing to calm my tired nerves...
