2 August 2013

story (5 minute friday)

Joining with the writing flash mob that is Five Minute Friday at the home of the lovely Lisa Jo Baker. Writing not for comments or traffic or anyone else’s agenda. But for pure love of the written word. For joy at the sound of syllables, sentences and paragraphs all strung together by the voice of the speaker.

Five minutes on story



Forty years ago today on the Isle of Man, a small island off mainland Britain, a huge fire ripped through a holiday complex called Summerland. Fifty happy holidaymaker’s lives were lost.

We were on holiday as a family in the same town at the time. I was too young to absorb the impact of the situation and its awfulness.

It is one of those sad events that is perhaps not as widely covered as some others. Fifty lives whose stories were snuffed out agonisingly and many more who have suffered since from the loss of  a close  family member.


Photo credit: Neal Fowler (Fragile)


The fire was started by the careless discarding of a cigarette

How often do our careless words have a destructive impact on others’ stories? Changing the course of events and missing God-given opportunites to shower grace.

Let us learn to love well and not be a spark to a devastating inferno, one that burns up and suffocates another.

Be oxygen to draw out the best in each other's story and recognise the true value of our own.





7 comments:

  1. Hi Jo
    The fires causes not only severe destruction in people's hearts, but can cause fires that can totally burn the last remains of a wounded, broken heart!!
    Blessings XX
    Mia

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    1. Absolutely Mia we want to be healers not destroyers. Thanks for popping by

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  2. Wow! Powerful story! And when we think of our words having the ability to have the same kind of destructive impact! I loved this part: "Let us learn to love well and not be a spark to a devastating inferno, one that burns up and suffocates another. Be oxygen to draw out the best in each other's story and recognise the true value of our own." Thank you!

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    1. Thanks for dropping in. It seemed appropriate to remember the event & the people involved in some small way.

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  3. A great message here, sometimes it can be all too easy to be that devastating spark without even realising it! Think oxygen, think oxygen!

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    2. Hey there Sabrina, thanks. Just like you were the oxygen to the gentleman in your lovely post

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