Fire and Rain Too Far Apart

Ironic that I am laying here listening to the sound of a soft, steady rain as our town back home is threatened with burning up once again. This is my time to be sleeping since  I have an almost 2000 mile drive home with only my 6 year old granddaughter for company to begin today. But here I lay listening to the rain and watching the flames devour the forest right at our towns edge. Ron is already on his way home on a plane to help the kids and try to save whatever can be saved in case our home is lost in the flames.

Wasn't it only a decade ago that 500 families became homeless in our town from an oh so similar fire. The trauma of that event has everyone bailing out of town even before the evacuation is mandatory this time. Those who lost their homes and those who didn't know too well that homes are devoured by fire. The firefighters of the southwest are valiantly battling blaze after blaze but they are spread thin and certainly no match for this fire season.

Our blaze started at 1pm and grew to 6,000 acres in no time at all. The fire picked the perfect conditions of heat, no humidity and extremely high winds to capture our attention. Tan and Tillie are thrust into the grown up role of packing up the vehicles and animals and deciding when it is time to drive away perhaps for the last time from our home. Ron will get there by noon if they are still letting anyone into town. While I begin the tense trek home cautious not to overly concern a sweet little girl who has already had to survive losing her daddy. My obsession with information about the fire will need to be tabled for her sake.

Since I haven't slept this night and it doesn't look like I am inclined to perhaps I should scoop her out of bed and into the car and head south in this cool, quenching rain. It will be a long trip with plenty of opportunity for prayer. Prayer for our town, my family, firefighters, and those who are suffering all over our nation and our world. It has been quite the year for mother nature and her fury.

In Him,
Joyful