In The Bardo
In our mountain community, which is literally tucked in by Los Padres National Forest, there are pockets of what we call, “green belt.” Basically, these are the areas that were left alone when this community was developed in late 1970s so some of the homes would have views of the forests. The trail I spend a lot of time where I’ve created many of my photos is also on one of those green belts. Recently, the forest services have been doing a lot of clearing. Due to the drought sustained over the last many years, many of the old trees died and became fire hazard. Where it used to feel like a deep forest is now a pretty open field with some healthier old trees still standing. Some of the huge fallen trunks are left in the field and started the process of decaying. Having become so familiar with this forest, I can’t help but notice how these tree trunks would take years and years to decompose after they fell, the in between stage of a tree’s life between being a tree and being a part of the dirt on the ground.