WHAT I WANT

It is confession time today!

The air needs to be cleared and I have designated today as the day of unburdening.

Please bear with me as I seek to release myself from something that has caused me great grief for most of my life.  Understanding is all I seek and I hope it will come from those who are my friends and associates.

For more than 40 years I have hidden the fact that I have an urging that is clearly uncontrollable.  It started when I was a Boy Scout, but even before that I was aware of feelings that drew me toward this issue and made it difficult to resist.  

I have finally determined that I must embrace my desires and allow the “real me” come out.

Here it is!

I love fire.

It’s true.  I worship fire and all it does.

I love the colors that are generated as different fuels burn.

 I think about fire every day, almost all day long.

I am fascinated by the way it dances and flits from place to place when it is racing to its next fuel source.

Whenever I see a building or forest “en fuego”, I want to stop and bask in the total control flame has over everything in its path.

When I have been deprived of things burning for a while, a part of me MUST do what it takes to satisfy the overwhelming need to help the beautiful fiery tongues of flame consume – anything.  

Mostly, I love the power felt as I embrace the desire to create fire in the most obscure places at the most inopportune times.

Some might accuse me of being crazy – or even evil.

I AM NOT!!!

I have learned that fire is not evil – and neither are those who love to create and use it

.

 Think of all the good fire does in the world – cooking, sterilizing, heating, and signaling.

Sure, sometimes a blaze can get out of control and destroy homes and in rare circumstances even kill people.

The flames are not to blame.  They seek only life in a world that fears them unjustly.

Despite the challenges, I am confident that as people learn to accept my love for fire in all its glory, they will see as I do and accept my new way of life.

In fact, with my announcement today, I intend to start a campaign for the elimination all negative references to those who have a love for burning things.

I am proposing that laws be enacted immediately to protect the rights of all who have been termed “Pyromaniacs” by an unforgiving and unfeeling society.  The word “pyromaniac” (which holds such judgmental meaning) should be eliminated from all publications.  There is no ‘mania’ in what I love to do.  I am simply a person of fire (that’s the new PC phrase for what we are) and I am embracing my true nature.

Now, a message to my friends and family.

You know me, and understand that I have my quirks and oddities.  This is more than that.  This is a part of me that has been repressed for decades.  I have been forced, because of the traditions of the world, to keep this part of me hidden from view. 

I am no different than I was before.  We can still be friends.  We can still love one another.  Please be kind as this vital part of my life unfolds and allows me to finally become my true self.

My hope is that as I visit and share my passions with you, there will be understanding for the nature of my needs. 

And if, by some small chance, your own dwelling or personal property is caught up in my passion, I am confident you will continue to show love and allow me to live as I have chosen. 

Your need for safety is understandable but should not restrict my own feelings of want.

MY desires, needs, and appetites, are essential to my mental, emotional and physical wellness.  Please understand and accept me for who I am.

I thank you for your time and hope you will embrace the needs of “people of fire” as you have embraced others who have created changes in their own lifestyles.

The above message is SATIRE.  While I do have some affinity for fire,truly borne out of many years in Scouting,  I am not out of control, nor do I long to start burning things everywhere I go.  The point of my diatribe is that if we look hard enough there will always be at least one part of our existence that can become the focus of our life – to our detriment.

Currently, in the world where I live and work, many people feel that their physical, mental, and emotional needs outweigh any effort to have rules common for all of society.  Changing moral values invite many to look for reasons why the rules that have governed mankind for centuries don’t apply to them.  Everyone is an “exception” to the standards that have given our world balance.

The idea that embracing every desire or passion we feel in our mortal state will bring us happiness is a lie, perpetuated by the world and the adversary.  There is only one set of standards that will ever bring peace and joy (pleasure is not the same as joy).  

These standards are not found in any government, club, or society that exists as a man-made entity.  The only “rules” that will bring happiness to all are found in the teachings of the Savior Jesus Christ.  He alone knows the way to true happiness.

 When we get tired of trying to mold ourselves to the ever-changing form of man and the world, Christ invites us to try His image.  That one works.  It’s the only one that is true.  

It will bring peace.