Quiet Fires

On a cold winter night, there is great comfort in having a fireplace going in the living room. If you do not have a fireplace, candles can create the same aura on a smaller scale.

The fact that they are still built into homes as ornaments rather than a real source of heat and light, like the gas models with the fake logs, are an echo of the ancient memories we have of the primal importance of fire in our lives. This image and feeling is embedded in us. Some people refer to this kind of resonance as genetic memory. From the time of our caveman ancestors to the present moment, sitting by the fire is something we have done until we no longer think about it, we just do. If I fire is burning, we gather around it.

Fire was the first great discovery of mankind. Once we knew how to start a fire whenever we wanted one, we were safe from freezing to death. Imagine the first people who discovered that fire would keep wild animals at bay. Imagine the delight of the first people who discovered the taste of food warmed over a fire. Imagine the first people who experienced the soothing pleasure of a warm bath. Imagine the the first people who discovered that putting plant leaves in boiled water sipping their first cups of tea. Imagine the first people hypnotized by the flames speaking visions.

Fire was magic to those people. Fire is still magic to us. Here's to the joy of winter evenings in front of the fire.