The First Burn

"will we burn in heaven like we do down here?..."

anybody burns home

first burn

fire in the sky

back to burn

burning man
2001

This is a story about one person's experience at burning man.  it is a story about just one person, but it could be anybody, because everybody burns... sometimes... somewhere...

i went to my first burning man by accident; on a mission to help a friend who had been there and had to suddenly leave. driven four hours to meet her in a town in oregon and help her solve a problem

once the crisis had passed, she told me where she had been... what she had seen and experienced. i was fascinated. she cried that she had been forced to leave. i could see her level of disappointment. "how far away is it? I asked. "another four hours maybe?" she thought

there were no voices calling me home. so, impulsively i went back to burning man with her... with nothing but a small water bottle, the clothes i had on, and little idea of what it was about

it was already late in the day. we left my truck and rode in her car... 
it was filled with dust, clumps of dried mud, beer bottles and a strange assortment of articles. camp gear thrown in on top of colorful clothing. an assortment of toys and drained water jugs filled the back. someone had spent time coloring the inside of the windows with something... paint, crayons? glitter sparkled on the floor

we talked for a while, then i drove while she slept.  she was very tired for some reason.  we wended down winding roads through desert canyons as night took over the sky. the stars peeked out through scattered clouds. i watched for meteors

fire in the sky...