I too am sooo afraid of fire. What is it about Indian Country that we are impacted by fire, drownings and car wrecks. In the early 1980's (Tacoma) I was aked by my best friend to take my son to a friends house, where the matriarch was babysitting a bunch of kids under the age of 10, so everybody could go party elsewhere. My son was sick so I said "no I can't tonight". Got a call at 6 am notifying me that the house burnt down and 8 children died in that fire that was started by kids playing with matches. All native children -- so tragic, yet not unusual. So I'm super afraid of fires (I won't have a wood stove) and so many lost in car wrecks that I am a paranoid driver. So sorry for your loss, we never get over them or stop thinking about those we have lost.
Your sadness and fear are palpable in the poem. I think there is a primal attraction to stare into the the flames of a small, controlled fire. It's when control is lost that attraction turns to fear and horror always remembered.
Scars from the loss of family can last a lifetime and longer. Sorrow for your loss is not enough.
I have been burned by heat, but rarely by fire. We have a wood burning heat stove with a clear window in the door. I can stare at the flames and pretend to become one with my ancient ancestors. Of course "pretend" is the operative word. Please have the best Christmas you can have with your family and friends.
I worked part time this year at outdoor street events grilling Japanese yakitori chicken. All day long the flames will pop out and bite my hands once in a while. But they never get the best of me and it's satisfying that the customers absolutely love the chicken.
I am so sorry you lost your sister in the house fire, Sherman. No wonder why you’re afraid of fire. As a child my family and I went through two house fires, one only partially burned our home in Chelan and later the other in Montana burned to the ground, every room but mine. 😳 No one was killed or injured but after the second fire my mother was never the same again because we lost everything. She lost all the pictures and mementoes of her childhood and young adulthood, and all her cherished books.
Dec 23, 2022·edited Jan 14, 2023Liked by Sherman Alexie
You take me back to Prometheus: the terror and the gift. I rely on heroes in _Who by Fire: a novel_: Folks who've done incredible things to save others from fire. Have my own obsession with fire. We need it and know that tragic losses come with it. From my heart to yours for your sister, Sherman. No way to heal from that loss. xo ~Mary
reference to a burning house in a very important speech that I covered - “If your child was in a burning house, and you knew that there was very little chance that you could save them, would you not try? Would you not try?” - Dane Wigington on March 28, 2015 https://youtu.be/dibNc-pT2sQ?t=1427
It reminded me of my neighbor’s house burning completely to the ground when I was a kid. A family of four, nobody was home. Police questioned the father because the authorities and many people in the community thought he did it on purpose for insurance money. They were poor. Soon after the fire, he took his life in the woods across from my childhood home.
Amazing! I thought I was alone in my fears--planes, elevators, ships and boats etc. It makes traveling hard, doesn't it? The only mode of transit I really enjoy is trains. When I was in college I took the train from Spokane to Boston 16 times, 68+ hours one way.
I share your fear of fire but for no remembered reason. It is magnificent and unrelenting and beautiful, dancing and demonic. I have seen faces and forms in the flames as if beckoning us to join their dance. I have a fireplace that I have never used because I am so afraid. Fire swallows and engulfs us and is nonnegotiable. It always wins. I am so sorry for the loss of your sister in this way and understand that it will always haunt you. But fire warms the body and lights our way on the dark path too so there is good, on the other side of terror.
I too am sooo afraid of fire. What is it about Indian Country that we are impacted by fire, drownings and car wrecks. In the early 1980's (Tacoma) I was aked by my best friend to take my son to a friends house, where the matriarch was babysitting a bunch of kids under the age of 10, so everybody could go party elsewhere. My son was sick so I said "no I can't tonight". Got a call at 6 am notifying me that the house burnt down and 8 children died in that fire that was started by kids playing with matches. All native children -- so tragic, yet not unusual. So I'm super afraid of fires (I won't have a wood stove) and so many lost in car wrecks that I am a paranoid driver. So sorry for your loss, we never get over them or stop thinking about those we have lost.
Your sadness and fear are palpable in the poem. I think there is a primal attraction to stare into the the flames of a small, controlled fire. It's when control is lost that attraction turns to fear and horror always remembered.
Scars from the loss of family can last a lifetime and longer. Sorrow for your loss is not enough.
I have been burned by heat, but rarely by fire. We have a wood burning heat stove with a clear window in the door. I can stare at the flames and pretend to become one with my ancient ancestors. Of course "pretend" is the operative word. Please have the best Christmas you can have with your family and friends.
The fire is felt. I’m deeply sorry for the loss of your beautiful sister. May love and peace be with you. Always.
I worked part time this year at outdoor street events grilling Japanese yakitori chicken. All day long the flames will pop out and bite my hands once in a while. But they never get the best of me and it's satisfying that the customers absolutely love the chicken.
OMG! Sending you a hug!
I am so sorry you lost your sister in the house fire, Sherman. No wonder why you’re afraid of fire. As a child my family and I went through two house fires, one only partially burned our home in Chelan and later the other in Montana burned to the ground, every room but mine. 😳 No one was killed or injured but after the second fire my mother was never the same again because we lost everything. She lost all the pictures and mementoes of her childhood and young adulthood, and all her cherished books.
You take me back to Prometheus: the terror and the gift. I rely on heroes in _Who by Fire: a novel_: Folks who've done incredible things to save others from fire. Have my own obsession with fire. We need it and know that tragic losses come with it. From my heart to yours for your sister, Sherman. No way to heal from that loss. xo ~Mary
reference to a burning house in a very important speech that I covered - “If your child was in a burning house, and you knew that there was very little chance that you could save them, would you not try? Would you not try?” - Dane Wigington on March 28, 2015 https://youtu.be/dibNc-pT2sQ?t=1427
It reminded me of my neighbor’s house burning completely to the ground when I was a kid. A family of four, nobody was home. Police questioned the father because the authorities and many people in the community thought he did it on purpose for insurance money. They were poor. Soon after the fire, he took his life in the woods across from my childhood home.
Also made me think of Fire and Ice by Robert Frost. And To Build a Fire, by London.
Wow. Again--you pack a strong punch with very little externally. Fire 🔥 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Amazing! I thought I was alone in my fears--planes, elevators, ships and boats etc. It makes traveling hard, doesn't it? The only mode of transit I really enjoy is trains. When I was in college I took the train from Spokane to Boston 16 times, 68+ hours one way.
Guess you are not going to switch the tone of your work for the holidays? Thank you.
My neighbor who I had been helping due to his poor health killed himself last weekend and all I can think about is death. His, mine, everyone’s.
I am afraid of death.
Hope you don’t mind if I write my own poems inspired by your work?
This incantation seems like one of my tools to heal with just now.
I am afraid of death.
Your poems open me to more of myself and often give me a way out or in - to places which might have stayed hidden.
Hope your holidays are as good as you want them to be.
Peace.
Sherman, as always, thank you.
I share your fear of fire but for no remembered reason. It is magnificent and unrelenting and beautiful, dancing and demonic. I have seen faces and forms in the flames as if beckoning us to join their dance. I have a fireplace that I have never used because I am so afraid. Fire swallows and engulfs us and is nonnegotiable. It always wins. I am so sorry for the loss of your sister in this way and understand that it will always haunt you. But fire warms the body and lights our way on the dark path too so there is good, on the other side of terror.