Hung by twine in a manzanita tree, a bird feeder–including seed–survived the fire.
After spending a day sifting ashes and clearing up after a fire, I and my companions have personal thoughts.
A fire is a terrible thing, as I’ve written about here, here and here.
I’ve also planned what to do in a fire, which I wrote about here.
But seeing the devastation and my reaction to it, I have several other thoughts.
Resilience
L’s resilience in the face of devastation was a great encouragement to the stunned volunteers who gathered at her property.
“I’m amazed,” a teacher wrote, about
“L’s gentle spirit and acceptance of what is. I have no doubt that there have been tears unseen by us, and there will be more, but her spirit the day we were working can only be attributed to her faith and trust that God is still with her and He will use this in some way.”
Her ability to see the good in what looked like a war zone to us cheered us to work harder to help. It was an honor to serve her and her husband.
100-year-old bulbs survived the fire.
We’re all thankful for the opportunity to be there for them.
As a talented musician wrote:
“I was spiritually re-energized after working at L’s property. Now that my children are grown, it is a rare sensation to feel truly useful and there, working to clear away the rubble and ashes, I not only felt I was helping but also being obedient to God’s call to action. The combination of being useful and obedient gave me joy, so it was all good all around.”
The 100-year-old amaryllis bulbs, growing three weeks after the fire swept through, amazed us and reminded us of nature’s resilience, too.
Serendipity
Why did one house remain and another burn?
Why did the china fracture and yet the snowman mug with a carrot nose survive?
Hanging a bird feeder in a manzanita tree–that endures fire–leaves birdseed for birds afterward!
A teacher was struck by
“the magnitude of the destruction, and yet, at times, the randomness of it. On the one hand, large sections of the hillside/forest burned, brown, etc., then random green sections. Or the hillside near the Lions Club that was black, and only one house burned – in between two other houses.”
Possessions
The remains surprised a metallurgical engineer:
“If it was combustible it was gone – there was no soot, just ash where the house stood. Actually quite clean and sterile.
“The ants survived.”
I was amazed at how many wires were in a house until I realized everything that’s plugged in has three strands of wire in it.
A scientist commented,
“You could see where everything was in the house: the couch here, the TV there, the pipes traced the walls.I dug through a mound that turned out to be a closet, I found the desk. Most of the structures aren’t there, but you can tell what was there.”
Humility and Community
Another musician appreciated
The blessing of organization, the framework we volunteers could attach ourselves to, along with L’s gratitude and the role of cocktail hour in building community. Or was it the coconut cream pie and champagne? LOL!
L had a treat for the volunteers after we finished for the day!
Closing Thoughts
A singer:
“God doesn’t cause the bad things in our lives, He is in the good that comes out of them.”
A Marine:
“My thoughts are a mixture of pride and sadness. Pride in a job well done, and sadness at the great loss of treasured memories for all the fire victims. Only faith in the Risen Lord, Jesus Christ can help to ease the pain they must feel. It hurts to think of their losses.”
Tweetables
Volunteers reflect on cleaning up after a fire Click to Tweet
Humility, Serendipity, Thankfulness: after a fire Click to Tweet
A bird feeder–with seed–survives a fire Click to Tweet
Thoughts? Reactions? Lurker?