Devastating

Just another normal morning; reading through the overnight e-mail and news and then seeing if Shannon or Alicia has posted something new on their blogs before I turn to the RSS feeds for more news.

This morning I was surprised to see that Shannon had changed the ‘look’ and title of her blog and then I read what she had posted. A house directly across the street from her had caught on fire and she described the terrible event and the aftermath. No one died or was injured but much was lost in the fire and subsequent rain.

Of course I thought about the only house fire we have ever experienced; a next door neighbors house. Sure, it was traumatic but certainly not as devastating as the one that Shannon described. And I thought about the fact that it is fire that we are all afraid of. Floods, earthquakes and tornadoes don’t seem to have the mental impact that fire creates. And fire is so democratic; it can strike anyone at any time and I think it’s that ‘randomness’ that produces the fear. You can’t build your house on higher ground to protect it from fire. I don’t think there is anyone that leaves their home for an extended period of time that doesn’t worry a little about the possibility of a fire. Is the coffee pot turned off? The iron?

See how powerful a fire can be? That one touched Shannon and then I read about it. Now you’re thinking about it and looking at the things around you, your possessions, and wondering…

Enough about fires. The daily world news is more comforting, even when it’s bad news. But before I go there, I have to comment. Shannon wrote, “If you choose something based on your beliefs, and if your beliefs are not in your direct control... do you really have freewill?” So of course I have to figure that one out. When would your beliefs not be under your direct control? Hmmm?