I love the fall…but, I am really starting to dislike October. 4 years ago – almost to the day! – we were evacuated from our apartment…the result of a scene very similar to this one:
(This was taken from our front yard this afternoon. Our house is on the right edge of the picture.)
It’s more than a little frightening to see that coming over the hill at you!Â
Within a matter of minutes the sky changed from blue, to brownish, to black. If you noticed the little patch of blue sky in the top corner, this picture is acutally an improvement over how things looked earlier!  By the time I got out to take a few pictures, the wind had blown some of the smoke away. It was erie. The sun was a reddish color, and, from my kitchen window I could actually see the dark gray-black plumes of smoke rising! Not to mention the fire engine that went zooming down the street (I’m assuming it was just a precautionary measure, but…).
Jason took Hannah to the mall this afternoon…leaving me and the kitties to have a “relaxing†afternoon! I spent the majority of it glued to various news reports, and making sure I knew where all of our important papers (i.e., insurance!) and pictures were. And, those of you who know me, know I do oh-so-well under this sort of pressure! 
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As I type the sky is still a brownish-gray color, and the wind is as strong as ever.Â
Mark 4:39-41 “And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?’ And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’â€
He still has the power to calm the winds…
(For the nervous parents/in-laws/grandparents who might be reading: The news reports have said that the fires – there are 2 of them on either end of the valley! – are not currently threatening Santa Clarita…)