Handmade - Fused glass jewelry - infused with ash from the Thomas Fire.
Unique - no two are alike.
Limited release - will stop making on the one year anniversary of the Thomas Fire.
Customizable.
10% of sales donated to Upper Ojai SAR.
To see current availability and to purchase, come over to my Instagram page @MikiKlocke
The Thomas Fire began while
I was celebrating my 50th birthday.
As we exited the restaurant we were hit
with the foreboding smell of smoke;
an alarming scent when you live
in a drought effected climate.
All through that first night,
with the entire valley submerged in darkness,
I anxiously watched the mountains glow with fire.
The morning sun rose with an ominous light,
erratic winds continued to howl.
I could see flames descending down toward
my home, so I evacuated.
I stayed away for 9 days,
with first the imminent threat of fire
and then dense smoke and ash
hanging heavy over the valley.
When I returned to see the bare
and black scarred mountains
of my birth home, I wept.
Fear and anxiety have continued to
dominate life in the Ojai Valley.
Each rain brings threat of mud and debris slides,
every siren or thump of helicopter blades
amps up a collective apprehension that
is not soon to leave us.
Creating art is a
healing medicine for me.
Within our art is a story—a story we share.
When we are heard, we begin to heal.
I started experimenting
with glass and ash in the studio.
With the birth of the glass bear,
I felt a deep breath release from
within. I found a spirit-soul connection
to my home-land that I had
never felt before.
I am blessed
that this mecca known as Ojai
is infused in me, and no matter her scars,
she is home.