Most people want the “American dream” –– the two story home, 2.5 children and a golden retriever named Buddy. It is not bad to want these things out of life; in fact, I believe it is healthy to want these things. It is really stability that we want, an assurance that our life will be the same tomorrow as it is today.
Two years ago my mother, sister and I experienced a tragedy that turned the American dream into an American nightmare. Our house caught fire and we were displaced out of our home for nearly a year. While the entire house was smoke-damaged, many of our belongings were salvaged. We knew the house would be repaired, and that it would be better than before the fire. This gave us some hope in this dark and stressful time of dealing with contractors and also grieving the pups we lost to the fire. This wasn’t even the worst part.
Five months later, an arsonist set our detached garage on fire. Some may say, “That’s not so bad, it must not have been as bad as the house fire.” Truth was that it hurt more –– a month before the garage had been set on fire, we placed all of our salvaged items from the first fire into the garage for storage. The garage fire destroyed nearly all of our belongings. Our pictures were destroyed, books that I have collected over the years disappeared and furniture that was handmade by my great-grandfather was also damaged.
At first it hurt to recall all of things that I will never lay hands on again, but now, I think it was a blessing in disguise. God has reasoning for all that he allows to happen, even the terrible bits of life. I may never know the full entailment of why I lost nearly everything that I had growing up, but I know that has been liberating to have lost the things I had clung so dearly to. I clung to materialistic things that served no purpose but remind me of the past. It is unhealthy to cling to objects because nothing is forever, the memory associated with the stuffed animal or necklace should be worth more.
Now that our small family has moved backed into the house, and I off to college, I appreciate my time spent with others so much more. I also try to let go of any items I may be holding onto because it may disappear in a couple of years. If you are unattached now then you will be unattached later. I have enjoyed rebuilding our life after the fires and appreciating the little things in life, I most enjoyed reminiscing the laughter and joy of the memories that perished in the fire. Those memories will never truly be lost because they will always remain in my heart.
