I had a call from my cousin, Georgie, tonight. She rarely calls and my first thought was, "Oh, who died!?" and instead, it was her home that died. Her, her granddaughter and great-granddaughter and sheltie dog escaped this afternoon from an electrical fire that consumed their home in minutes. If it would have happened while they were sleeping, I fear they would never have made it out. They had a foot of snow last night and more on the way and her husband was on his way to the U.P. to work this week when he got her call that all their belongings and home were burned to the ground. Also living with them is another granddaughter, her boyfriend and their other baby ... that's 4 adults, a young teenager and two babies who lost all their belongings but still have their lives. She thought of her piano her dad bought her, her brother (now deceased) had built an entertainment center for them, her youngest son, Justin's ashes in their little container ... all their clothing ... her mother's cedar chest her father built. I know she will be remembering things for a good long time that she no longer has, many things that will be irreplaceable. She said it took the fire dept 20 mins to get there because of the bad roads, and the Red Cross came and gave them some money to get a motel room for 3 days and some money to get some clothing for them all. This cousin had a daughter die in a car accident, a son die in a 4-wheeler accident, 6 of 7 brothers die, most of cancer, she herself had cancer surgery this summer, and her great granddaughter who was saved from the fire today had surgery to remove a tumor from her brain last year. Am I missing anything? Oh yeah, her mom died just a few yrs ago also. Her dad when she was 19, I think. I believe her other daughter has cancer now, also. Her and I were talking about her becoming like a Phoenix, rising from the ashes, starting fresh. She wrote many, many beautiful poems beginning after her daughter's death in 1997 and all of them are lost as they were on her computer. I pray they have good insurance and can rebuild and replace ... but photographs and mementos? I knew she was in "survivor mode" as she's needed to be in for so many years. When we hung up, getting in a few hearty laughs amidst MY crying (she hasn't yet), I looked around the house for a few things I can add to a collection for her. My mother's red LL Bean chamois shirt for one, a little December birthstone figurine of a girl holding a narcissus a friend gave me, a porcelain angel candle holder I bought from her granddaughter (who she raises as her daughter now, being in the vehicle her mom died in when she was less than 2 yrs old) ... and I will wait to hear what more I can do as time goes on. Nothing is permanent. All is impermanence. I am so grateful for their lives so that they can go on a new journey together, finding the strength to keep bending in the wind. God bless you, Georgie, Daryl, Jordan Danielle, Courtney, Laila, Ayallia and Josh (unsure of some spellings), and the little sheltie dog. If anyone has ever had this happen to them, can you give me any suggestions of being a true help? Thank you, Bloggie Souls.Love from your SisSTAR
xoxoxoxo
3 comments:
There are so many things people think they just cannot "get through"...but it's amazing what you find within yourself at these most difficult times. The fact that this is a "family" and they are none of them alone will help to have that moral support frame..it will get them through it..the hugs,knowing they are not alone in this and people like you writing in the blog world about them.
They are alive and there will be much they must get through...but help is on the way...they need to find a resource..maybe from the red cross or other organization that will start them into a "system" of referrals to find for help..there will be red tape filling out firms..it will be stressful..but they will persevere for they must.
I wish all their Guardian angels for this family to be all around them in light...they are "Not Alone"...they have one another and comfort to get through..
Love and Blessings to your friends Kylita...bless you for taking the time to be there for them and make a difference.
Love, Rhi
I am so sorry that something like this had to happen to her.
It is terrible to learn about the hardships and heartaches she had to endure with the passing of so many loved ones. She had to undergo cancer surgery herself... it is most inspiring to know that she is such a survivor. A very strong person amid so many unfortunate things that life has thrown at her.
I do hope she and the family will be safe and taken care of my the authorities there and especially the rest of their relations and friends.
You are doing a wonderful thing to give her something to replace what she had lost in the fire. I think knowing that you are there for her, she feels safe and hopeful about life.
Hope you will write about them in the future to see how they are doing.
A very moving post!
I was in a burning house as a baby and even there I had to do soemthing to save myself! Then lateran, when i was about 7 our house actually really burned down (the first time the fire was put out fast enough), but then luckily we had already moved...
I also know, what it's like, getting robbed of all belongings, becomming homeless and all other things...
but there's only one thing to do. get bacdk on your feet and continue to look for ways out, ways to handle whatever problems will present a challenge for you.
Ypu know, there might even be soemthing good aboput the terrible things that happened. you never know. But reading about the people who were so ill... perhaps there was soemthing in the house that made them ill?
Anyway, once they are back on their feet, you could have them check ou "natural hyhiene" and "Hulda R. Clark's books" on the net. perhaps they can then find a solution for their bad health conditions and all get well?
Anyway, I wish them all the best from the bottom of my heart and it's so very sweet of you, that you try and see what memories you can collect for them! it is right, these things do matter most when you loose your home. i have almost nothing left from my childhood, just memories and those are not painting such a pretty picture, so it would have been nice to see it on pictures or the old films my father had made and to compare. was it reall as bad as i remember or where there perhaps a number of things that suggest, that there wasn't only hatred there and then?
greetings from Scandinavia, sarah sofia
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