When darkness comes

Some years are worse than others; this one was the worse I can remember.  I've seen my share of fires near this little village. I've even battled them. But this year, the destruction was insane. I wasn't here when it came, but followed closely as the family kept us informed in the dark hours, that turned to days. I finally came to see with my own eyes how bad it was, and even with all the reports, it was way worse than what I imagined. How close did the fire got to the village? This close.  Forest fires are usual in the summertime in Portugal. Add an especially hot Summer, years of lack of planning and disregard for the forests, incompetent leaders, and clearly insufficient means... and you have the recipe for disaster.  It would feel less bad if the same bad movie didn't played in repeat every Summer: the same lines, the same chaos. It just comes in different shades.  This year, the entire village was surrounded by the flames. There is burnt soil all around. Places that I had never seen burnt before. Only scattered patches of beauty remain.  The little waterfall I've passed countless times on my way to my grandparents gardens maintained the green all around, at least for a few meters; everything else was up in flames. But as in all darkness, hope remains. The huge chestnut tree in our lands might even survive, despite having most of the lower branches burned.  Hope that more people start to pay attention to our nature.  Hope that reflorestation happens as it should, with native species - some species are more fire resistant than others, and pine trees and eucalyptus are definitely not the ones that should be here (and the ones that invariably are planted, and contribute to this nonsense).  It's good to see that talks are being made on that topic locally, and it's a process I definitively want to be part of.  Nature heals itself it we let it... even faster and better if we help!