When the Power Goes Off - John C. Bieber

The power went off at our house last Saturday night during the first snow of the season. We had 8 inches where we live. I like it when the power goes off. Unfortunately I have a furnace that has an electric blower, but a few dark quiet hours are always a welcome break. Like most people when the power goes, we light candles and just wait. In the summer months I often light a candle when a good line of thunderstorms rolls through secretly hoping for the lights to go out. It seems that the electric power usually goes off in the evenings due to storms, downed lines and even car accidents that take electric polls out.
We have a fireplace that I burn wood in a few times every winter. It’s very relaxing and changes the mood of our home. Things slow down. I have a real affection for fireplace fires, camp fires and bon-fires. Some of our bon-fires in our back yard are legendary. My favorite campfire was at a neighbor’s house in winter when we all circled the fire seated on our folding chairs with our feet near the flames to keep warm. My sneakers were so close I noticed the bottoms of them smoking. Nothing better on a cold night than warm feet.
Fire hasn’t changed since God invented it. Fire is timeless. Flames still act the same way as they always did. They move, flicker and swirl in the same dance steps that George Washington’s men watched in their cabin fires at Valley Forge and in the campfires of American pioneers heading west. When I look into a fire I can imagine people thousands of years ago seeing the same thing looking into the same fire that I am. It’s like looking at stars, they are timeless too.
There is a home near us that is over 250 years old, that I have spent many hours at night sitting in front of its original condition huge open hearth with a good wood fire burning inside it. We light candles around to fill out the dark places. It feels like time travel. Everything is the same as the first family who sat in the same spot over 91,000 nights ago. Those people lived and survived by the heat and comfort of the warm family hearth. The hearth was the center of home where food was cooked and where people slept on the coldest nights. The home fire drew people close.
Today the “home entertainment unit” is the 21st century hearth. People gather around big flat screen surround sound TVs… that is until the power goes out. Then we reach for the old never fail technology, fire.
During this Christmas time, take a moment to turn the TV, the computer, lights and music off. Light some candles or sit by your wood burning stove or fireplace and rest. Step back in time when the only entertainment people had was each other. Enjoy the quiet and feel the spirit of the season.
When our storms pass and the electric company fixes the problem, I try to make sure the lights are in the off position when the power comes back on. I want to ease back into the 21st century. I’m never really in a hurry for the lights to go back on. Keep the home fires burning.
John can be reached through his website www.JohnCBieber.com