An Unwatched Pot Never Stops Boiling

Some might describe me as occasionally forgetful and absentminded. I've been this way for awhile. In high school I once left my car running in the parking lot. It took a school-wide announcement over the intercom to jog my memory. As a college student I realized seven hours before my expected departure that I had never actually purchased plane tickets home for Thanksgiving—a minor detail. And most recently I forgot something kind of important and came close to burning down our apartment building.

A few days ago I left some chicken boiling on the stove in preparation for the next day's dinner. We didn't have a timer, but I decided to rely on my stellar memory. Of course, I immediately forgot about it, graded a couple assignments, and then called it a night. At about 2:00 in the morning I woke up suddenly when Nick flicked on the light and said "Angel, get up. There's smoke everywhere." I followed him through a haze into the kitchen where I was horrified to see a blue flame still lit on the stove. I suddenly remembered what I'd started hours before. The water having long steamed off, the inside of the pot was unrecognizable. We pulled out the recently stored fans, opened every window to the cold night air, and tried to go back to sleep. I lay awake for a couple hours worrying about likely smoke damage and wondering if someone who could so easily start a near-fire should really be in charge of young children on a regular basis.

We spent the next few nights bathing walls and furniture in vinegar, burning scented candles, and testing our washing machine's maximum capacity. At first, the smell of smoke that greeted us every time we came home was a nagging reminder of my irresponsibility and forgetfulness. Kind of depressing. Soon, though, I imagined what could have been—an actual fire had Nick not woken up—and came to see the slowly fading fumes as a constant reminder of something else—God's protection. A week later I grow more and more thankful to our great God who does not sleep but instead looks after his children, especially the forgetful ones.

Also, thanks to our close call the school administration is going to install smoke detectors in all the volunteers' apartments.