PORTAL: Sticks by Lorenzo Feliciati, Pat & Deborah Mastelotto

There is a beautiful piece of land at the end of Texas highway 290, just on the west side of Fredericksburg, where miles of trees have been devastated by oak wilt. For some reason I always seem to obsess about this oak graveyard each time I drive past it on my way to Marfa, or Big Bend, or Santa Fe, or California. Maybe it’s because I’m somewhat of a gardener, but I felt the pain of this spot keenly. This last time I drove past this place I anticipated the spot like I always did, looking for the first dead oaks to signal the approach of the graveyard and preparing for the shock. But I couldn’t find it. I saw some dead, gnarled branches and stumps, but I also found regrowth, a resurrection of sorts. Everywhere I looked, I saw sprays of green from a seemingly dead limbs, new green tops on old dead stumps and I t felt like I was witnessing a miracle. This was a visual representation of one of the most basic principles of life on our Earth: Death and rebirth.The classic Tarot deck contains a card that scares most people when they see it, misunderstanding it’s true, esoteric meaning—the ‘Death’ card. It rarely represents actual death, but really means the ‘ending of something as we know it’, and the beginning of a new cycle. Much like Dumbledore’s pet phoenix in Harry Potter, sometimes we have to accept endings (painful and dramatic) to clear away the old, to make room for new life.
- Deborah

Pat Mastelotto is an American rock drummer and record producer who has worked with King Crimson, Mr. Mister, XTC, The Rembrandts, and many others.

patmastelotto.com