We are an unsolicited collaboration with nature. Ember Drift was born from a day on the Pacific Crest Trail when seven wildfires ignited from lightening strikes around us. We walked through Oregon in smoke so dense it erased the landscape, casting us into a surreal space of fear and disorientation. The painting captures that momentla: layered pigment and water-stained fabric as an unintended collaboration with nature. While wildfires are part of many ecosystems, their increasing frequency and intensity reflect climate change and unchecked development. Ember Drift invites reflection: we are not separate from the burning world we are of it.