God of the Fire Poem

This poem is based on my real life experiences of living through some very scary wildfires in Oregon. Not being familiar with the area, I did my best to learn and prepare. As bad as it was, it could have been much worse. Always grateful for our firefighters who brave danger for all of us. And that includes the loggers who graciously donate their time and resources to help fire containment efforts 🛻 🪵 

 I was living out west in Southern Oregon.

It’s beautiful surroundings, taking it all in.

Then summer came; things got very dry.

After a lightning storm, flames began to fly.

I woke up smelling smoke, not knowing what occurred.

The smoke’s thick haze caused the sun’s light to blur.

Went to my phone, looked up local pages.

Began to learn we had the fire of the ages.

Indoors I stayed, to avoid all the smoke.

I tried hard to smile, but this was no joke.

My to-go bag packed, Jeep filled with gas.

Ready to evacuate, but praying it will pass.

I prayed for cool weather, I prayed for some rain.

I prayed for the firefighters, battling all the flames.

No smoking, no starting my car on dry grass.

Taking nothing for granted, as the days passed.

Slowly, but surely we made good progress.

The fire’s control started to regress.

Now, time to rebuild and time to heal.

Check in with loved ones, share a good meal.

Yes, it was scary and down to the wire.

But I placed my faith in the God of the fire.

photo by: Matt Palmer. Unsplash.