Thursday started out as an ordinary work day. I got up early - we had to pick up six tons of hay before afternoon. Haying is a dirty, busy time. Alfalfa leaves, wind, dirt, and hair flying in your face, sweat dripping as you heft bales that weigh as much as 90 pounds into a trailer; only to unload it so you can stack it in the barn loft. It's good, hard work - frustrating at times, but still good. =) There's something satisfying about a loft filled with hay for the winter and something awesome about being tired, hot, and dirty because you worked hard to be that way.
We'd just arrived home with our second load and started to stack it in the loft when my brother (who's on the volunteer fire department) got a call on his pager. As fond as all twenty-one-year-olds are of excitement and catastrophe, he roared off in his new Ford pickup to a four-acre wildfire about five miles north of our home.
My 14-year-old sister Sarah, eight-year-old sister Abby, and I were left standing in the driveway with a trailer filled with 82 bales of hay, wondering how we were supposed to get all that stacked and put away by ourselves! But Sarah and I started right into it. Abby couldn't lift bales heavier than her, so she galloped around on her stick horse, hat askew, and shot at imaginary bandits with her plastic cowboy pistol (a result of watching The Magnificent Seven a few evenings before).
Mom and Roberta, my older sister, arrived home about 15 minutes later from an appointment in town (oh, good, more workers!). Mom asked if we had seen "the fire" while bringing the load of hay back. We said no, we'd missed it, but that's where Joe was at the moment. They couldn't believe we'd missed it! Apparently, there was a bunch of smoke and you could practically see the flames from the roadside (about a quarter mile from the actual fire).
About that time, we got a text from Joe - "Are you all ready to evacuate if you have to?" You can just imagine what questions flew!! "Will we really have to leave?" "What about the animals?" "What do you mean, 'If the wind changes'?" "Where's Dad?" "Where's Joe?" "I thought it was five miles away." "Where will we go?"
Mom was finally able to get a word in edgewise and convince us all to first empty the borrowed trailer of our hay and then drive and take a look at the fire. The wind was blowing towards the northeast - away from our farm. If it kept blowing that way, we'd be safe. The wind would have to totally change direction (head to the southwest) and hop the interstate in order to get to us. With gusts up to 40 miles per hour, the wind could easily blow that fire in our direction, and fast. A cold front was moving in, bringing with it the slight possibility of a wind change. We were praying like crazy!
After finishing the hay in record time, we hopped into the car to take a look at the fire. As we rounded a curve about three quarters of a mile away from our house, this is what we saw. You can see the source of the smoke in the center of the picture. The whole valley was filled with smoke, dust, and dirt kicked up by the strong winds. It didn't look too good, at this point!
We headed down the road a few more miles until we got to the highway. Down the highway a little ways you could see the billowing smoke more clearly. Several roads were blocked off and people were anxiously waiting to get back to their homes.
The fire was burning over a small ridge, so you couldn't actually see the flames - but there was plenty of smoke!! Helicopters flew back and forth to the river for water, and soon one of two fire planes in the whole state appeared.
To make a long, long, long story short - the Lord protected us. He kept the wind turned away from our home, and overnight, the fire was calmed slightly. The Department of Natural Resources had earlier called out every fire department in the county to help, but by the next morning, the fire had crossed the county line and all the fire departments were sent home again.God protected my family and our home - but as of last night, we'd heard that 700 acres had burned. In a small town, news travels fast, but it can also get complicated - so far we've heard reports of anywhere from 2 to 4 to 20 homes burned. I guess we'll have to wait till the weekly newspaper comes out to get the real story!!
The fire was still going this morning, and so I don't know how much damage has been done yet. But you can keep those families in your prayers - as well as all the firefighters and relief workers here to help.
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But it makes you wonder - what would you take if you had to leave your home? What would happen if you weren't home when the evacuation warning came? What if you returned and your house was a total wreck, all your things gone?
I thought of all that on Thursday... and I am so thankful that the Lord was faithful to me and my family and kept us all safe!! He always provides... and you know what? He would even take care of us if our house burned down. If our things were lost. If we never had quite the life we had before. If we had to start all over.
But it makes you wonder - what would you take if you had to leave your home? What would happen if you weren't home when the evacuation warning came? What if you returned and your house was a total wreck, all your things gone?
I thought of all that on Thursday... and I am so thankful that the Lord was faithful to me and my family and kept us all safe!! He always provides... and you know what? He would even take care of us if our house burned down. If our things were lost. If we never had quite the life we had before. If we had to start all over.
Not one sparrow... =)
"And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work."
"And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work."
2 Corinthians 9:8
"And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:19
