Between a Rock and a Hard Place

I am, and always have been, a creative person. I’ve dabbled in painting, jewelry making, crocheting, drafting, commercial art, acting, fiction writing, gardening, cooking, and more! However, MUSIC has been the predominant outlet for my creativity ever since I was a small child. As the daughter of a music teacher and bandleader, it was a no-brainer that I would immerse myself in music throughout my life. And this was true up until September 8, 2020.

What changed that day? It was Oregon’s devastating Almeda Fire (a fire that broke out at the northern end of Ashland at 11:04 am) that fractured my life forever. I remember the day vividly! My partner, Robert, and I were outside on the deck enjoying the sunlit late morning when my cell phone rang. “Hey, have you heard about the fire?” My friend Peggy asked. “What fire?” I replied. She told me to go and look into the sky toward Ashland. I hung up the phone, and Robert went inside to grab his camera. We both hurried into the street in front of our mobile home at Bear Lake Mobile Estates. From our viewpoint, looking South toward Ashland, we could see an ominous, gray cloud of smoke. Robert started taking photos from every angle. It seemed, at first, bizarre – impossible to grasp. We were confident that this was no big thing and that the firefighter crews would knock this down quickly. Oh, how wrong we were!

As I had suggested, Peggy and her partner, Bruce, soon arrived at our doorstep, courtesy of a Jackson County Sheriff deputy who drove them over to our place. (Their cars had to be left behind because fire trucks and other emergency vehicles needed the lane leading to their mobile home park to fight the fire.) As the deputy left, he warned us, “you probably have about fifteen minutes to a half-hour before being asked to evacuate.” We hurriedly packed up a few belongings - Robert’s cameras, my meds, and one change of clothing each. We put our dogs, Chewy and Buddy, in Robert’s Kia Sportage. Sadly, my six-year-old cat, Sassy (a boy), had gone into hiding because of all the commotion, and Peggy and I could not find him. We prepared to leave because the fire was reaching the edge of the complex. Police patrol cars were slowly driving through the streets, and the officers were shouting into their megaphones, “Leave now. Get out now.”

After leaving our home behind, (so sure we’d be returning that I locked the doors), we all drove out to the Jackson County Fairgrounds, where the Red Cross and other helpful groups were passing out water and snacks. We milled about the parking lot, talking to other evacuees waiting for word on the fire. After two hours had passed with no report on the fire status, I called my band’s bass player, Bill. “Hey, Bill. Can I rent your AirBNB for a few days?” He replied, “No, but you are welcome to stay as long as you need to!” Robert and I, along with Peggy and Bruce, headed over to stay with Bill and his wife, Lillian.

TIME TO REGROUP

We were able to stay with Bill and Lillian for five nights while we explored our options. Before the Almeda Fire, the Rogue Valley was already experiencing an extreme housing shortage, so our options were limited. Not wanting to overstay our welcome, we next moved out to Merlin, OR, to stay with Robert’s son. During our stay in Merlin, we decided to buy a truck and a travel trailer and, like many other Almeda Fire victims, became full-time RVers! Our first stay (30 days) was at the Jump Off Joe Creek KOA, a few miles down the road from Merlin. While staying at Jump Off Joe, we completed the exhausting task of listing our household contents for the insurance company. Within a month, with all our local obligations met, we hit the road.

Our first destination was a vast, dusty vacation complex next to the “mighty” Colorado River, the Oasis RV Park in Ehrenberg, AZ! We stayed a month – 25 days too long, in my opinion! If we had one more lane in front of us in our RV spot, we might as well have been in a traffic circle. We were pretty happy to leave this particular RV park in our rearview mirror.

From Ehrenberg, we only had to drive a few hours to reach our next RV park in Ajo, AZ. We fell in love with Ajo and spent four months exploring and enjoying the beautiful Sonoran desert. We saw so much wildlife, including burros and javelinas. And I even found some great musicians who invited me to become part of their “seasonal” band. I was getting my music “fix,” and it made the time pass more quickly. Our four months in Ajo were the best!

Upon leaving Ajo, we had three days booked at an RV park in Benson, AZ. During this time, we made a day trip to visit Chiricahua National Monument – advertised as a “wonderland of rocks.” It was a spectacular sight to see! We were on the way back to our Benson RV park when we saw an exit sign for the “Cochise Stronghold.” “Yes, let’s go!” I exclaimed.

The stronghold, located at the base of the Dragoon Mountains, was just a few miles off the highway, and there wasn’t much to the place. A beautiful woodland area nestles up to granite domes and sheer cliffs which was once the refuge of the Apache Chief Cochise. While there, I had Robert take the obligatory photo of me standing next to the brown National Forest historical marker. After Robert took the picture, I stepped back. Then I noticed something colorful lying on the cement base of the sign. As I drew closer, I discovered it was an adorable pink flower on gingham painted rock. I felt lucky to have found it, and as soon as we got back to our RV, I posted a picture of my find (as instructed on the back of the rock) to the Arizona Rocks Facebook page.

THE BUG BIT ME

Before the Almeda Fire burned my home to the ground, I had a large craft workspace in my mobile home. Now, with minimal space in our 26 ft. travel trailer, I have to keep my art supplies to a minimum. I also need to “let go” of my art once completed. So, painting rocks and leaving them for others to find and enjoy is a perfect solution. It is also a calming and meditative art form. Living in tight quarters can be very stressful! Cabin fever is a constant threat!

So, when my mood gets dark, or I start feeling stressed or hopeless, I reach for my acrylic paints and pens! I often feel like I am living between a rock and a hard place! So, I embrace turning rocks into something beautiful, and it puts me in a better place! Even if that place is miles down the road. For now!

PHOTO GALLERY