AFTER THE ASHES

In August 2023, the Evros wildfire broke out near to Xanthi. It burned several hundred kilometers of forest, “the largest fire ever recorded in the European Union. ” 16 days, 94,250 Ha, 58% of the Dadia National Park.

Which future in a changing environment and how to face the challenges generated by human activity ?

In a village nestled in the Xanthi mountains where a woman called Soula, lives and had to face the fire. Throughout the day, she fought the flames, despite the difficult conditions: the wind was blowing hard, making extinguishing them even more complicated. In the evening, a neighbor joined her to lend a hand. In Dinos Christian's poem, this quote reminds me of Soula, as it reflects her strength of renewal, similar to the power found in nature :

“They tried to bury us, but they didn't know we were seeds.

As for her house still damaged, with holes in the roof, she does not let it get her down. She sets about repairing the damage, rebuilding and giving new life to this place. Her love for nature and animals remains intact, despite the dramatic transformation of the landscape: where once there was green vegetation, now only blackened and desolate land remains.

Soula has set herself the goal of making the land fertile again. Although she has decided to no longer take in new animals, she devotedly watches over those who remain, offering them a freedom and quality of life that they would find nowhere else.