His overgrown neglected garden badly needed attention

At first he just trimmed back a few branches

But soon progressed into cutting down entire trees

Once dark shady corners welcomed the new light

He toiled for many long days 

Stacking logs and branches into a huge pile

Pausing to look at the cleared land

Visualizing new plantings and future flower beds

The thought of hauling away all the cuttings was overwhelming

Much easier to to burn it he concluded

He was inexperienced in making fires

The moisture laden wood created more smoke than flames

He went into the house looking for dry combustable material

Dragging out boxes full of old papers

Pausing to look at old photograph albums

Faded images of his departed wife were added to the pile

Tables and chairs were broken up and dragged outside

The pile got bigger and bigger

Progressively he cleared every room in the house

Bad memories were being purged

Throwing a single lit match into the massive pile

He stood back and watched the flames grow

The fire took on a life of its own

Crackling hissing and billowing smoke

He was hypnotized by the flames

Suddenly the wind picked up

Sending sparks high into the sky

The fire became an inferno fueled by the wind

He watched the burning embers land on the roof

Not wanting to intervene he decided to let the fire do its will

He felt strangely calm watching his house burn down

The demons of his past were finally gone