The Morning After

The day our house burned down, our friends immediately opened up their home to us. It was a real comfort to us, to be surrounded by friends and not be isolated in some hotel room. In the midst of crisis, I felt confused and distracted by all the crazy details. By the time I headed to bed that day of the fire, some of the realities where starting to hit me. I felt sadness and anxiety of not being able to return “home”. Home, that place where you go to relax, regroup, and return to normalcy. Well that place was now gone. Being able to return “home” brings a certain comfort and reassurance that was now missing for me.

I had a really hard time sleeping that night. I slept for very short periods of time. I lay in bed awake for hours. When the sun started to rise, I just had to get out of bed and wanted to meet with God and get out of the house. I grabbed my bible (which was saved out of the house!) and went looking for a box of tissues to take with me. I resorted to grabbing an extra roll of toilet paper from under a bathroom sink and left the house as quietly as I could.

I wandered into the back yard considering different locations to sit and think and pray. There were many. Next to the pool was a very nice swinging bench with a roof overhead. A group of Adirondack chairs around a fire pit. A wooded ravine further back. I headed for the edge of the sunken wooded ravine. I was in disbelief of what my eyes saw below. I wondered if I was in some sort of dream, if it could be real. Had God brought me into this place of beauty to sooth my soul? Was this place here, in reality, or was I in some altered state? I wasn’t sure.

Below me lay a vast sunken meadow with a winding stream weaving its way through the beautiful green carpet of foliage, under a canopy of beautiful trees. Just totally unexpected and beautiful. I ventured into this beautiful place and tried to take in all in. I walked along the stream and saw fish jumping, and frogs and the birds were singing. There were hand built bridges to cross the water and places to sit. It was breathtaking. I was touched and thankful and comforted by God.

Eventually I headed back up to the yard and decided to take a walk down the street as well. I set down my Bible and my roll of toilet paper in the driveway before heading out. I laughed to myself, imagining the impression I would make on the neighbors seeing my items in the driveway. Later I shared my morning story with our friends who summed it up as, “Holy shit!” We all had a good laugh.