Discovering Harmony in California's Vibrant Superbloom

California has witnessed a remarkable spectacle this year, with the return of the California superbloom for the first time since 2019. Over 30 atmospheric rivers, or "rivers in the sky," have swept across the state, leading to an unprecedented release of 30 trillion gallons of water across the landscape.

This dramatic weather event has brought both beauty and chaos. On one hand, the superbloom has painted the landscapes with a vibrant array of wildflowers, while on the other, it has caused flooding in homes and farms due to the melting of the historic amount of snowpack.

The superbloom is a rare natural phenomenon that occurs after several dry years followed by an extremely wet year. This year's event has been no exception, with the state experiencing both drought and flood conditions.

Local farmer Melissa Parks has felt the brunt of these extreme weather conditions, losing her crops in the storms. However, she remains optimistic about the future, seeing the superbloom as a symbol of the land's resilience.

Ecologist Joan Dudney finds the superbloom a moment of reprieve, but also a warning of future severe drought and flooding events. She emphasizes the importance of acknowledging these nuanced emotions about climate change and making room for both distress and beauty.

Climate psychologist Leslie Davenport echoes this sentiment, noting that humans have difficulty talking about and naming new experiences brought about by climate change. Specifically, she discusses the balance between beauty and ruin, a topic she believes is crucial in navigating our unfamiliar territory in the face of climate change.

Artist Alicia Escott and her partner Heidi Quante have created a lexicon of climate-related terms to better encapsulate feelings of fear, grief, and hope. Terms such as "gwilt" (causing wilting in plants out of concern for water consumption during a drought) and "quieseed" (a seed that stays dormant until it finds itself in a fertile, fecund environment due to social trauma) are part of their unique vocabulary.

Escott believes that language and art are just as important as science-backed solutions in saving our planet. She argues that climate change asks us to look at the death of the way we live and see possibility. Her recent art work involves cultivating wildflowers, which she finds provides a source of joy and a reminder of the land's resilience.

The Tulare lake, a cultural site for the Tachi-Yokut tribe, is now filled with water due to the floods. Cristina Gonzales, a member of the Tachi-Yokut tribe, believes the floods are the Earth's way of bringing things back into balance.

California rivers are now flowing with fish and gold for people to mine, adding another layer of complexity to the state's ongoing climate change narrative.

A new term, "blissonance," has been coined to describe an otherwise blissful experience in nature disrupted by understanding of its negative future effects. This term encapsulates the emotional rollercoaster that many are experiencing as they witness the beauty of the superbloom while also grappling with the realities of climate change.

As we move forward, it is clear that we are all still learning how to navigate the dimensions of climate change. It is crucial that we continue to find ways to communicate our experiences, emotions, and solutions effectively, in order to better understand and address this global challenge.