Genesis 1:1

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Genesis 1:1. Though the cover was ashes barely holding together, many blown away, the Bible was open to the Beginning of time. It sat out on top our old stove in the driveway, carried out by firemen in the midst of flames.

Rather telling isn't it. God doesn't miss a step. He doesn't waste anything. In the midst of these ashes, we find His message. This isn't the end of our memories, our history, our dreams; this is His gift of a new beginning.

This is a defining moment for our family. A moment in our history that we will always remember as a beginning.

We flew Isaac home from his boarding school to be with us. We can't start over without him. He can't grasp the reality of today without us.

So, slowly, we all began to dig through the piles of debris. A baby blanket here, a stuffed animal there, the remains of Gary's Gary Fisher mountain bike, a few pages of my Betty Crocker cookbook - the one that is just like my mom's. The massage chair, once too heavy for 4 men to carry, is now two inches tall, only the platform remains. Gramma's old secretary desk looks like last week's campfire...yet tucked inside a badly burned drawer, our neighbor found Bea's adoption papers. Untouched.

The lovely oak bookshelf is missing its top two shelves, contents and all. There is nothing left to show they ever existed, however, the baby books on the bottom two shelves have only burned edges and water dripping from the fireman's hose.

I keep wondering how this inferno could have left my little wicker purse, with its shell flower sewn on, completely intact. It doesn't even smell. The deposit inside is still waiting for the next trip to the bank, and my driver's license isn't melted.

These days are very hard, and yet we find ourselves rejoicing more than crying. No one was hurt. We all still have a thousand memories that bring up much more vivid pictures than any photos lost. We don't mind having only three outfits, no phone, no address, no toys. We have each other.

It's a new and beautiful start. God reminded us, when the smoke died down, and we found His message in His first Words, burned but lasting forever.