My son was married on Saturday. It was a monumental day—the hottest day in recorded history for Victoria, low humidity and windy. We had been warned about bush fires and they eventuated with more ferocity than anyone anticipated. Currently 131 people are confirmed dead with many more missing; over 700 homes have been destroyed.

Meanwhile my son’s wedding went off very well. The church was very warm and photos were difficult because of the weather but the reception room was air conditioned. The passage my son and his fiancée had chosen for their wedding was Luke 12:13-26. The theme was about building marriage (and life) on a firm foundation and not simply acquiring “an abundance of possessions” (v.15). About 100-150k away and within hours of the wedding hundreds of people lost everything they owned. Life indeed is not about an abundance of possessions.

My other son lives in one of the towns which was hit by the bush fires. The fire came up their street, burnt down many houses including the one next door and then, thankfully, stopped. He and his wife were, of course, at the wedding, had they been home they would have been evacuated. We have other friends in this town as we once lived there ourselves and fortunately they are all fine. We traveled home on Sunday and Monday, mostly with a smoke haze. It has been an eventful time and I’m feeling very tired.

by Susan Barnes
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