Dear Ali,
Columns of smoke stretch into the sky: one, two, three, four. We count them as we pass highway exits. On the side of the road, a man sprays foam on a blaze that looks brand new. Brown smog slips around the car.
Our first morning in our new apartment, we wake to soot in our mouths. Outside, it smells like a campsite. The sun turns red.
Our second morning, the fires make NPR. I listen as I brush my teeth. In Sonoma County, ash falls like snowflakes. There aren’t enough firefighters, or trucks. Not enough shelters to space out evacuees. Not enough electricity. Expect rolling brownouts.
Preparing to move west, I listed good things: universities, wine, weather, jobs, state parks, a bay. My first memories of San Francisco consist of seals and sourdough bread. The place is progress, beauty, culture! It’s where people go to ride bikes; to eat clean; to get rich; to have a good “quality of life.”
And yet: trouble persists. I drive to Hayward to buy a desk, and see the neighborhoods change across freeways. I drive past Apple, Facebook, and Google. I stroll the grounds of the nearby college. All the fountains are dry; the libraries are empty. There are problems in paradise, obvious as smoke plumes: inequality, monopolies, educations interrupted.
Climate change is here. Racism is here. The pandemic is here.
At risk of sounding morose: of course!
We try to outrun sickness, taxes, violence, conflict. The demands of other people, hot temperatures, high waters. I get it: I want to flee too. But flee anywhere, and you’ll find that the human condition (difficulty) can’t be escaped—just incrementally improved. Or prayed for. Sometimes, just coped with.
This week, it’s going to stay hot and dry. We dampen towels, and shut the windows. We assemble cheap furniture. We unpack books. We start making a home. When we go out, we put on masks, to keep out sickness and smoke.
Yes, cannot outrun the human condition. Is there an alternative to just coping? How to "thrive", as my exec coach would say. But, does the need to "thrive" add undue stress?