Two Matches and a Handful of Dryer Lint

(I’ll soon be done with the Cheat Salamander references, so just bear with me.)

While in the Elkins, West Virginia area for the excursion, we were fortunate enough to rent a house in Glady, about 11 miles away from the train station. We arrived at the house after dark so we had no idea what the outside of it or the surrounding area looked like. One look inside, however, was enough to convince me that I could live in a place like this. After settling in, I fixed a cup of coffee and wandered out onto the deck. With the aid of the moonlight peaking through the clouds, I spotted what appeared to be a fire pit on the ground below.

When morning came—another cup of coffee in hand—I ventured outside while waiting for the rest of the family to get ready for the train ride. The scenery was beautiful, decorated in its fall colors. It only strengthened my desire to remain here as long as possible. Since I knew that wasn’t going to happen, I decided to see about the fire pit. Sure enough, there it was; the moonlight had not played tricks on my eyes. Tonight, we would have a bonfire

When we returned to the house later that night, it was already. My brother-in-law and I decided to see about getting a fire started. I had matches, but it takes more than just matches and a log to start a fire. I went to the woodpile and scrounged up some kindling, but that wasn’t enough. Then it hit me. I hurried inside to the laundry room, opened the dryer, and discovered that the lint trap had not been cleaned out. Lint is a good fire starter—it is also why you should never go off and leave your dryer going.

We touched the lit match to the lint and it began to burn. Around the small flame, my brother-in-law began to build a small teepee of wood. By adding a bit more lint and larger pieces of wood, we soon had our bonfire.

A lot of times when we are starting a new story, we want to start with the log and the match. We know we have what it takes to keep a story going, but we can’t figure out the right way to start it. Sometimes, we need to take a step back and look at the small, seemingly meaningless, things. A small idea can create a masterpiece just as easy as a big idea.

Just thought I would jot this down.