Categories
general

Burn One Down

The mountain north of my work was on fire today. The view from my cushy chair on the 3rd floor of the well air conditioned building left me without a care in the world. Besides, I didn’t see any houses on fire; only grass and bushes and trees. I’m sure there were houses in danger, however, I was protected by my own complacency. The airplanes flew over countless times and dropped water they picked up from the nearby reservoir.

I wanted to tell them that it was ok, that they could stop their mission. *I* was perfectly fine, so there was no need to put out the fire. There is something that I have always found comforting about the flames of a huge fire. Something burned inside me as I watched the mountain set ablaze.

When I drove home from work and pulled into my apartment complex the view changed. The smoke and flames seemed WAY closer to me, and I felt like it could actually be possible for this fire to reach me. My complacency dissipated. I looked for the planes that I had wanted to call off earlier. They were still flying and dropping water. I am glad they didn’t listen to me.

It’s easy to be apathetic or content with evil or mediocrity when it only impacts everyone else. As soon as it has the ability to affect me, I get scared. I guess it is time to fly straight and put out some fires of my own.

Categories
rant

We Didn’t Start the Fire

Just a few days after Christmas my dad and my step mom were in for a surprise. Their RV caught fire, and with the Santa Ana winds in full effect, they could have easily lost the house. With the fast action from the Rialto Fire Department everything ended up ok, except for the RV, which is now in RV heaven. R.I.P.

Let this be a lesson to all smokers. Don’t just throw cigarette butts in a trash can. Always ensure they are no longer smoldering.