Finding Father Serra
That had to be him. Hidden among the bushes, in an area of the SF Botanical Garden that was cordoned off and ominously marked “Area Closed For Your Safety”, I could make out an old bronze statue.
Ever since we moved to SF, the statue of Father Junipero Serra has stood proudly outside the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park. But then over a hundred years since he first appeared on his pedestal, he disappeared.
Many statues were taken down in the aftermath of the George Floyd killing, and Father Serra was no exception. But had anyone thought about where he went? Now, in the bushes, I was convinced I had found him. Of course Rec and Park must have been hesitant to destroy this historical artifact, and with storage space at a premium, I was sure some enterprising City employee had come up with the idea of hiding him in the bushes at the Botanical Garden!
Of course, I was wrong. Upon closer inspection it looks like this statue has actually been there for a while. And if you approach it from a different angle it’s not even as hidden as I first thought.
Looking now at the picture below of the statue before it came down - it’s obviously not the same one.
Oh well, it was a thrilling find for a few minutes anyway!