Fire Relief Fund
On Wednesday June 28th i learned the true meaning of lucky to be alive.... we have been staying in lakewood in and old rv- no power or water. cre took one of the dogs on a long walk this morning and i went back to sleep with little dog. we had candles lit. as usual. except for THIS morning i woke up to a loud popping and crackling sound. one of the candles burned down and lit the rv on fire between where little dog and i were sleeping and the door to get out. at first i thought i could maybe save everything because there were TWO fire extinguishers outside the door so i ran through the fire to get to them only to find that neither one worked. and little dog didnt follow. by the time i realized it was too bad for me to control i looked up and only saw flames and smoke. but little dog was still in there. and i ran through the flames and found her in the farthest corner under pillows shaking. i couldnt even see her through the smoke, i just felt her. they arent exaggerating when they use the term "roaring fire"- the sound of the flames consuming everything was deafening. i wrapped my arms as tightly around her as i could and ran back through the fire that had completely engulfed the rest of the rv. when i hit the ground outside, i thought for a minute that i was on fire, but quickly realized that my back was just burned, not BURNING. i tried one final time to get a fire extinguisher from the cleaners on the corner, but realized that it was too far gone. little dog was flipping out and i had to catch her (it only took a few seconds for her to run to me and jump into my arms). i hugged her tight and as we sat there on the driveway, something exploded. people were already standing around the street staring at the flames that had completely engulfed the rv. they were almost as high as the treetops. and the firetrucks pulled in. i had only been awake for about ten minutes- TOPS. THAT is how quickly the fire took everything. everything except for me and little dog. we have had an incredibly hard year and have lost so much already. almost every belonging we had left was in that rv. but thank GOD that i woke up in time to get out and thank GOD that i made it back in and back out with my little girl.... losing her was NOT an option and i went through the flames to save her. despite all that has been lost, i am EXTREMELY lucky to be alive today. btw- my back wasnt burned too badly, its tender, but not blistered. i had a small blister on my hand, but nothing too bad. i got checked out in an ambulance, but everything seemed ok, so i declined a trip to grady to check my lungs. sometimes its hard to remember, but every day that we wake up is a blessing- try to remind yourself of that often and tell your loved ones how much they mean to you every chance you get, because you never know what the next day will bring. Now we (Mike aka Creashun, me, and our two dogs Masi and Little) are left without anywhere to go and all of our personal belongings- clothes, shoes, books, dog toys, music equipment, records, art and supplies, sentimental items, and everyday necessities- are gone. My little honda is on its last leg and too small for all of us to fit in to sleep anyways. We recieved a little help from the red cross, but only enough to get a room for two nights, so tomorrow morning we will all four be stuck on the street with nowhere to go. Please help us rebuild our lives and get into a new home.