It hadn't burnt down or anything but the smoke damage had been devastating. Nearly all of their possessions had been ruined. To me the couple still seemed in a state of shock and despondency. The comfortable life they had worked for had been cruelly yanked away because of an undiagnosed electrical fault.
At seventy five the fellow had still been working. He was a specialist in fine wrought ironwork and he had a big workshop close to his house. His order book was as full as it had ever been but the trauma of the fire, the disruption to his business and the reality of his age meant that he could not see himself picking up the reins again.
They had both lived in Louth all their lives and though they knew that they had been lucky to get out of the house alive, something had clearly died in each of them. The photographs, the keepsakes, the pictures, the attached memories - it was all now gone. What was left was an ongoing battle with their insurance company to achieve justice and ultimately a new home if their old home could not be brought back to life.
The man had woken in the middle of the night to visit the lavatory. He had pressed the switch on his bedside lamp but nothing happened. Then he pressed the wall switch but the main light didn't come on either. Then he opened the bedroom door and - whoosh! He was hit by a wall of hot air and black, acrid smoke.
It was a moment that changed his life. I must admit that the reality of suffering a domestic house fire was not something I had ever seriously considered before. Now I am wondering - could it happen to us?
⦿
In totally unrelated news, I would just like to say that our unborn grandbabes get closer to birth with each passing day as they grow in the wombs that nourish and protect them. Thanks to modern science, we now know the gender of one of the grandbabes. Ian and Sarah's child will be a boy! It's a little strange to know that in advance but of course, we are delighted even though the little boy's road to birth remains long.
from Yorkshire Pudding https://ift.tt/ZMD1zQ8
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