Fire and the Fourth

Happy birthday USA and happy 4th of July everybody!!!

What a beautiful day it’s been. We had a splendid Independence Day meal here at the McAnall family household: barbequed chicken, corn on the cob, mixed fruit (watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, and blueberries), and corn bread, with a glass of milk to top it all off. Great stuff! Nothing particularly extraordinary happened today, except that I had a wonderful moment of self-reflection and appreciation for life as I sat outside pulling the husks off of the corn in preparation for dinner. Life truly is beautiful. Anyways, if anyone has a good (or bad, or funny) 4th story to share, go for it!

Moving on, what I really wanted to focus on is the splendor of fire. Just think about it: if you asked most Americans, they would agree that the 4th of July just wouldn’t be the same without fireworks. But what is it about fireworks, and fire for that matter, that is so appealing? The light? The warmth? The glow? Guys especially seem to have an incredible fascination with fire. I don’t think there’s a boy in the world who doesn’t go through a “pyro” phase at some point during adolescence. Heck, to be completely honest, I think I’m still in that phase to a certain degree. The only difference is that maybe I’m a little more responsible now, but I still love to mess with fire! Perhaps that's half of the reason that I've grown to like candles so much, because I don't get to play with fire nearly as often as I used to.

So here's the bottom line: Fire is cool! Seriously folks, where would we be without it? We'd be dead! Even if the early humans could have survived long ago without fire on earth, they still needed the heat energy from that great ball of fire we call the Sun! What a thought! I think we need a moment of silence in gratitude of fire. What a gift!

In light of all of this (pardon the pun), I'd love to hear people's stories about their experiences with fire. I'm sure we've all got some good ones. Also, I'm curious as to whether or not there are any ladies out there that have gone through a "pyro" phase too, because frankly, I just don't see it like I do with guys.