To LIFE//REGEN, BIO//REMEDIATE, go on a walk while listening to this sonic map of soil remediation in post-Eaton fire Altadena. You will need a listening device, a pen or pencil, and this zine (also below).
Movement I: Beginning / Digging
Begin the sonic map before you start walking. Pause for a moment and listen.
Notice the sounds, textures, people, weather, movement, and ground around you. You may close your eyes if you would like. Allow yourself to enter the underground: a space of relation, repair, memory, and transformation.
When you feel ready, begin walking.
Movement II: Middle / Underground
As you move through your surroundings and the sonic map, gather fragments from your journey.
Follow what pulls you in and keep note of what they are. It may be words, textures, or objects you encounter/overhear; emotions you experience; memories that relate with something you witnessed/heard; processes unfolding around you.
You may pause, retrace your steps, or continue forward. Let your surroundings guide your movement. There is no correct or incorrect path.
Movement III: End / Resurfacing
At the end of the sonic map, pause and reflect on what you have collected.
Using these gathered traces, assemble a short poem, reflection, or offering from your journey. You may rearrange words, repeat phrases, leave gaps, or write in fragments.
To help write your poem, you may respond to any of the following:
My community taught me ____________
Digging leads me to ____________
____________ makes me feel warm and welcome
____________ is growing everyday
My path leads to ____________
I exchange ____________ with ____________
I am nurtured by ____________ / We are nurturing ____________
____________ reminds me that ____________
We adapt and grow by ____________
I thank my neighbor, the ____________
Your poem does not need to be complete. Think of it as leaving behind a trace of your path.