remember ...the smell of fire. I grieve...

Remembering BRAG...Bicycle Ride Across Georgia...because we showered every night in the same shower trailers that served the firefighters in the western US. The showers smelled like fire. When I showered, I remembered the long ride, the long road. The smell made me ponder the relative safety of a casual bike ride and the howling horror of fire.

Yes, we faced danger on the road, but for them loomed death in the fire. I grieve their deaths: fire fighters who, like us, cooled their souls, showered in the water.

Remember the showers, the soul refreshing showers of water, remember those who fight the most dangerous wonder known to human life: fire.