False Alarm

Yesterday was mostly a “lazy day” for me. I felt that after a week of running around trying to learn about the ins and outs of my new job and everything else I was doing, I needed to simply rest. Rest for me can mean a few things but overall yesterday’s rest meant mostly reclining in my bed listening to music then a few sermons, watching movies, then reading on the internet. Most of the day had gone by without me realizing but that was fine. I’d been snacking throughout the day which meant nothing got cooked but that too was fine with me.

By the time I got to evening and darkness fell over my part of the land, I decided to call it a day and get ready for bed. I know I slept a bit but something woke me and for hours I tried different strategies to get sleep to come my way yet it lingered. I heard the clock ticking along the seconds which turned to hours yet sleep avoided me. I prayed then found a short sermon on my phone. I know I got about half way consciously then finally sleep took over. It probably could have stayed away because the dreams that came made me want to wake up. And that’s when it happened.

It was not a scary sound but it invaded my sleep and I heard it. First there was the alarm then an announcement in the local language then in English. It said there seemed to be a fire but to wait a few minutes for confirmation and instructions on what to do. It repeated. I was out of bed, lights on, heading to the bathroom to check if I looked presentable to head outside if necessary. As I went I thought, where is the fire? I opened the door and glanced down the hallways but when the lights automatically came on, only the red fire alarm button was flashing. There was no smoke or burning smells or signs of fire.

A few seconds later, the announcements came again, only this time, they said it had been a false alarm and all was well. I’m thankful to God it was a false alarm for so many reasons. A few of these include that I just moved here so a fire could mean finding a new home; there are many other people on the compound which would mean evacuating everyone; and fire trucks and ambulances would likely take a while to get up this mountain which would mean lots of destruction. What’s more is that while I was calm and warm enough to head outside, it did not occur to me to bring anything – passport, money, laptop, clothes, phone, nothing. I was basically going to put on my shoes and go.

I can laugh about it all now but I don’t think I’d be laughing had things turned out differently. Sure, now I’m more aware of the need for an emergency bag that’s packed and ready to go. But… I’m still thinking on it. In this daylight with the sun high in the sky and the few clouds low overhead up here on the mountain, I’m sitting near my heater, looking out and being thankful for false alarms.