Another Wild Surprise

We came home from the hospital with Dailey on Friday, June 22nd.  The Waldo Canyon Fire appeared in the Springs on Saturday, June 23rd.  I remember walking out to the curb with Ted and a neighbor and watching the dark smoke float over our neighborhood.  That night, we could even see flames flickering just over the distant ridge.  It was definitely creepy the way it was remaining in full view of our home.  We were also experiencing record breaking heat at the time.  The days were in the upper 90s and it wouldn't drop too much at night.  Very few people in the Springs have air conditioning in their homes.  We rely on the cooler nights to provide relief from the heat.  Not only was it remaining hot at night, but the air quality was deteriorating with the smoke.  We were really worried about Dailey.  We didn't want to leave the windows open and have her breath in smoke, but closing them made the house feel like a sauna.  Thankfully, my dad offered to buy us some individual AC units that could go in each of the bedrooms upstairs.  The only problem was that they were only available at a Home Depot in Denver.  As Ted was preparing to make the journey north, our neighbor ran into our garage in a state of panic.  "We need to evacuate!"

I ran upstairs and began throwing things into suitcases.  I packed diapers, wipes, blankets, pillows, clothes, shoes.  After watching the news, we realized that our neighborhood was not under evacuation yet, but the neighborhood 2 miles north of us was.  Ted stood by the curb outside staring up at the mountains.  He told me that he thought we would be ok, since the wind was really pushing the fire north.  It seemed that the only neighborhoods being evacuated were north, so maybe that was a good sign.  The next day (Monday), I unpacked our evac bags and told my mom it was safe for her to fly up to see us.  Ted had gone to Denver to get our AC units, so the house was much more bearable.  I thought we were in the clear, even though the fire was continuing to build.  When I drove around that night, I remember seeing the flames still flickering in the mountains.  The smoke cloud was massive.  It loomed over the city like a bad storm.

On Tuesday morning, mom and I sat outside with the kids playing in the backyard.  She made the comment that she could see the fire burning in the distance.  We could still smell smoke in the air, and hear plane after plane flying over our house to deliver water resources.  It felt like our city was at war, and in some ways, it was.  Ted called to tell us that all of Manitou was being evacuated, which is just south of our neighborhood.  That meant that the winds had changed, and the fire was much bigger than I had thought.  We turned on the news and watched as more and more neighborhoods were being told to evacuate.  I got a call from a friend who was just at her parents house in Mountain Shadows.  She said that they were getting ready to leave when they saw the fire come raging over the above ridge toward the neighborhood.  An unexpected wind gush had pushed the fire into the Mountain Shadows neighborhood just as it was rising out of a nearby canyon.  The news reporters called it a mysterious phenominon that took the entire city by surprise.  She was stuck in traffic and urged us to get out.  From the news footage, it looked like Armageddon.  Traffic jams, smoke, people in sheer panic.  We got a notice that the Flying W Ranch was completely burned to the ground.  Knowing that this convention hall was only a couple of miles away was unnerving.

It became clear to us that evacuation was going to be imminent.  All the neighborhoods to the north and south of us were being evacuated.  We could see on the news that homes just north of us were being completely demolished.  I couldn't believe what was happening.  We decided it would be better to get out now than to worry about it all night.  Thankfully mom was in town to help me with the kids while I repacked clothes, diapers, blankets, pillows, and shoes.  We don't have renters insurance, so I was aware that everything we left may be lost.  I didn't have time to find all of my scrapbooks and memorabilia, but I did throw as much as I could in the suitcases we had.  It was such a wierd feeling leaving the house.  Ted was still packing up and planning to take a trip to the warehouse.  I gave him a hug and told him that we have our family, and that's all that matters.  I'm sure that sounds dramatic, but truthfully, it was a dramatic night.  I felt like I was in a movie, something like transformers, trying to escape some evil monster.  I saw my neighbor packing up too.  She ran into her house and brought out a baby present.  "In case the fire burns everything, I wanted you to know that I cared enough to get a gift."  We laughed and hugged.  The thing that made my heart the heaviest was the thought of losing this community of friends, this little paradise of ours. I thought about Rock Ledge Ranch with the cows and ducks, Manitou Springs, the Glen, and it just made me feel sad.

People have been so sweet to sympathize with my situation, evacuating with a newborn.  Even though it wasn't an ideal scenario, God really provided.  My friend had sent us the name of her friend who had a basement available for us.  We didn't know the couple or anything about their house, but when we arrived, it was such a relief to see two rooms, a private bathroom, two queen sized beds, and air conditioning.  In some ways, it was actually nicer than being at our house.  The family had two kids the same ages as Ryder and Fin, and she was pregnant with her third.  It couldn't have been a better fit for us.  The kids loved playing with their toys and getting to sleepover with new friends.  We felt so blessed to be in a safe place and make new friends at the same time. 

The next day, Ted ran over to check on the house and pack up a few more things.  He said that the winds were blowing really hard into our neighborhood and he even collected a few embers that were falling from the sky.  We thought that our house would surely be gone in just a few days.  It felt a little surreal, but I was oddly at peace with it.  God had always provided in the past, so I knew He wouldn't leave us now.  Thankfully, our house and our neighborhood were spared.  The fire burned 348 homes, mostly in the Mountain Shadows neighborhood.  It was a sad time for the city, but also a really inspiring one.  The community really came together, collecting goods for evacuees, praying at the park for all those who lost homes, and cheering on our fire fighters.  One of my favorite memories from the whole experience was joining a crowd of people on the road to cheer on the fire fighter trucks on their way home from a long days' work.  These guys were risking their lives everyday for our safety.  They are the real heros.  Our community is still here because of them.  I'm more thankful than ever, to live in this place with people who fight fires together.