I opened my little needlework shop in Glenwood Springs in June 2002. A few days before my opening, the Coal Seam Fire erupted and several homes were lost in West Glenwood. No lives were lost in that fire, thank God. Forest fires and Colorado seem to go hand in hand. These long, dry spells and prevailing winds can turn the simplest little spark into a raging inferno on a dime.

The day the Coal Seam Fire erupted, I was at home with my Mom and Gary and Daughter #2. I had spent hours upon hour entering inventory into the new computer in the shop and I was so afraid of losing it, so before things got too bad, I made a beeline for Glenwood to get it. I ran in the shop, unhooked the CPU and headed right back home. In just the few minutes it took me to get back to the interstate, the fire had swept down the hillside on the south side of the river. The smoke was filling the canyon, but there was no one telling me not to go through. So…I floored it and headed west.

I just about made it to the South Canyon Bridge when there was a flash to my right. I leaned forward and looked out the windshield to see an arc of fire crossing the river and interstate and burning the hillside on my right. It was like a flaming rainbow! I wasn’t about to stop there and there was no way to turn around so I pressed forward. And…just twenty yards or so ahead, I popped out of the smoke and flames and headed on home. No worse for the wear, but shaken, nonetheless.

I heard about a fire on Monday that was not too far from Glenwood Springs where my brother lives. Then yesterday, I started getting texts and videos showing a huge fire right in Glenwood Canyon. That was getting too close for comfort and I called my brother.

“Hey, Bubby…whatcha doin’?”

“Well, you aren’t going to believe what I’m doing. I’m getting ready to do something I’ve never done before in my life!”

“Oh, yeah? What’s that?”

“I’m getting evacuated!”

Just what I wanted to hear.

“Where are they taking you?”

“To a hotel, I think.”

“Ok…well, don’t be scared. It’s going to be alright.”

“Why should I be scared? I’ve never been evacuated before!”

My brother. Always up for an adventure while his sister has an anxiety attack. lol

I checked my resources, asked my buds in Glenwood for an update, and was beginning to feel pretty confident the fire wasn’t imminently heading for my brother’s apartment. A friend called me from Glenwood to reassure me the fire wasn’t lapping at his door. Then…he called me.

Apparently, no one had explained the differences between “pre-evacuation” and “evacuation” to my brother and his roommate. A staff member came to the apartment and filled the guys in and told them there wasn’t anything to be concerned about…they weren’t getting evacuated.

So, all is quiet on the western front but my fight or flight response is sure as the dickens getting a workout these days! Now I need an antacid. Sometimes I wonder why I quit drinking. ?

❤️

“Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. Then, because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel.”

Philippians 4:6-7 CEV