Burnin' Down the House

Last night, while waiting with T1 to pick T2 up at a friend’s, my cell rang.   It was T2.  He told me that Hubby was trying to reach me because the house was on fire.   At first I waited for the punch line to this not very funny joke.   There was no punch line.   This was no joke.   I called Hubby and he confirmed that our house was burning.

We don’t know exactly why yet, but according the fire marshal, the fire started in our garage, in the dryer (yes, we clean out the lint after every load and the exhaust duct was just changed a week ago).   The flames shot up and around the inside of the garage, burning everything in it’s path.   It went up through the ceiling, into the attic and down our walls.   We were told that it was a mere two minutes from blowing the roof off of our house. 

The garage is a total loss.   The rest of the house was choked with black greasy smoke that has coated every last thing in our home.    There are burn marks on the ceiling where the flames reached out of the vents.    The smell is acrid and pervasive.   We have been told that it will be six to eight weeks before we can get into our house.

I am not a good enough person to say that this is okay because …    What I will say, is that I am grateful that Hubby was in the pool and the boys were out with me, when it happened.   T2 spent the day with a friend and Hubby and I spent the afternoon at the beach.   It could have happened while T1 was alone in the house.   It could have happened while Hubby was in the shower after his swim.   But it didn’t.  It happened while we were all outside.  And, Hubby was able to get Jack (our dog) safely out of the house, too.

I am overwhelmed with the magnitude of the task before us, but I am aware and grateful for the blessing that kept my family safe.   I am grateful for the neighbors who opened their home to us last night.  I am grateful for the firemen who arrived just in time to save our home.   I am grateful for the Red Cross workers who were there to offer help and the friend who took Jack on a moments notice.   I am grateful for the outpouring of love and support from our family and friends.

This sucks big time.  Still, I am grateful.