Festival of Lights (aka Christmas Parade)

The child within allowed me to stand throughout a two-hour parade on Saturday evening. The lights were beautiful, the floats were outstanding, and the marching bands played my favorite Christmas Carols. But as much as I get into that scene, I had a different reason for wanting to be there this year. Jerri Marr was the parade’s Grand Marshall. No amount of snow or cold weather could have kept me away. I had to be there to cheer.

Jerri Marr became our local celebrity during the Waldo Canyon fire. As supervisor of the Pike and San Isabel Forests and the Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands, Ms. Marr was the person who calmly provided honest information and reassured a terrified community.

As I stood waiting for the parade to begin, I heard the roar of the crowd to the north of my location. I knew this signaled Jerri’s soon arrival.

Riding on the back of a stunning convertible, with Smokey the Bear by her side, Jerri smiled and waved as the crowd clapped and cheered. I’m confident that many of the 32,000 evacuees were there to express their admiration for this lovely, knowledgeable lady. Hubby and I were two of them. I will never forget the fire raging close to my home, and I will never forget Jerri’s voice, her smile, her encouragement, her straight answers to hard questions, or her untiring efforts on behalf of our community.

Jerri Marr (USDA Forest Service Photo)

The band from my brother's Alma Mater stopped in front of us.

Mary and Joseph were there and …

…so was Santa.

Fun - fun - fun - and more fun!

Because It’s Home

When disaster strikes an area, people often ask those who live there, “Why do you stay?”

During the past week, I have seen Colorado Springs television crews filming residents as they sifted through the ashes and rubble of their burned-out homes in an attempt to find something that might have survived the disaster of the Waldo Canyon fire. One lady cried as her husband hugged her after she found the bracelet he gave to her for their twentieth wedding anniversary. This charred memento is now a precious treasure to them.

Each resident returning to a burned-out home in the Mountain Shadows subdivision was searching for something, anything that might be recognizable, but, when questioned, they all stated that they would rebuild in the exact same place. Why? I think the answer is, “Because it is home.”

The beauty we experience here in Colorado Springs is illustrated in the pictures below. (Just a sampling of the hundreds of pictures I’ve taken during our seven years here.)

Pikes Peak from our South Deck

Hummingbird Visits Feeder on Deck

Alert Buck beside Neighbor's Condo

Rainbow over the Mountains

Beautiful January Snowfall

Front Yard Tree in Autumn



Fear and Faith

During the past nine days, a situation I felt I would be prepared to face threatened close to our doorstep. We have always carried insurance on our property, but we have never before come face-to-face with the threat of catastrophic loss.

When the wind began to increase in intensity at our condo complex last Tuesday, I went to our front deck with my camera to take more pictures of the Waldo Canyon fire. Immediately, I knew the fire was out of control. With ash swirling around my face like snowflakes, I took pictures only a short time before the fire raged over the mountain ridge and entered the Mountain Shadows subdivision to the north of us.



Picture taken from front deck at 2:54 p.m. on June 26, 2012.

Picture taken from front deck at 6:45 p.m. on June 26, 2012, shortly before our evacuation.

• Yes, I felt fear. Fear is a natural response, but not an indication that I do not trust and rely on God’s love and goodness.
• Yes, I prayed. I prayed for the safety of the firefighters; for our police force; for our Emergency Management Team; for our city and county officers; for the successful evacuation of residents.
• No, I do not understand the forces of nature. I just respect them.
• No, I do not understand the columnist for our local newspaper, The Gazette, who, in the midst of hurt and loss, mocked and belittled those of us who were praying and trusting God during this time of tragedy.

We returned to our home on Friday and remain on pre-evacuation status. Ten thousand people are still unable to return home. As of this morning, the fire was 55% contained, and our hope is that it will be fully contained soon.

Our city will grieve the loss of two lives. We will support the 346 families whose homes were destroyed and the hundreds of families who will return to severely damaged homes. We have demonstrated during the past nine days that we are a strong, compassionate, and united community. We will continue to trust God. We will recover. We will be okay.