There is at least one thing that rural, small town and big city type people have in common-besides the obvious things like skin and kids and bills and such. Do you want to know what that one thing is? A fire! I have been part of a crowd in rural New Brunswick at 3:00 o’clock in the morning, and I have also been part of a fire-fueled crowd here in Toronto. Fires attract people-wherever they occur!

One time, Sheila and I were out for a walk and we saw some massive, inky black plumes raising into the cloudless blue sky just a block or two from where we were. We decided to put our lunch date on hold and go check out the fire.

As we started our pilgrimage to the fire, many others joined us along the way. One man suggested that it was the rubber factory that was just over on the next block. I immediately prayed that it wasn’t! What a nasty problem that would have been! Finally, we got over onto Cawthra Road. It runs along the railroad tracks, so we had an unobstructed view of the fire a few hundred yards from us, on the other side of the tracks.

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If you’ve been reading “Cold Feet” for any length of time, you may have read the article entitled “Crocs & Christ” about Steve Irwin. I was a big fan! His death was such a shock last week! My heart goes out to his friends and family in the time of their loss.

I’ll miss his enthusiasm. You just don’t see that kind of energy expended by most people. Steve was like a chihuahua with a caffeine addiction! Steve was excited to do what he did. He didn’t have a job, he had a lifestyle that oozed from his convictions and passion. He was an amazing ambassador of wildlife and conservation. One report I saw indicated that he spent a considerable part of his income buying tracts of land to preserve habitats, not just in his native Australia, but also in other endangered areas of the world. I’m not surprised!

Neither was I surprised to see that Steve died the way he did. After all, he spent a lot of time with dangerous, unpredictable animals. He must have had several close calls over the years. Still, as I watched and read the reports of his death last week, one word continued to reverberate in my mental membrane. The word was ironic. In a way, Steve’s death was ironic. I mean, how many dangerous situations has Steve been in? How many dangerous animals had opportunity to do serious damage throughout the years and yet a rather docile, mostly-well behaved animal was the one to end his life.

While I am sad that we lose such a great personality and ambassador, I have a hard time being sad for Steve–can you possibly imagine any more fitting way for him to have died? At the same time, I come back to the word “ironic”. Steve’s death as a result of a Stingray attack is the first such death in Australia in sixty years! These creatures are known to be friendly and good natured. If you looked in their year book, the comment beside their picture would be, “swims well with others, a treat to be around!” And yet, such was not the case for Steve. Everyone has clearly stated that Steve was not provoking this animal. Diver after diver has stated they have been in very similar situations and felt safe. There may be a few theories or suggestions that come out of this event in the days ahead, but the bottom line seems to be that it was a fluke. It just happened. In fact, Steve wasn’t actually supposed to be in the water that day because of the weather. Filming had been canceled earlier in the day but he went out anyway. I prefer to think that it was merely Steve Irwin’s time. Why? I don’t know–God does!

Here are a few thoughts that came to mind:

1. No one knows how long they have. You can be a thrill seeker or the king of caution, it doesn’t matter. When it’s your time, it’s your time. Of course many people take stupid risks with their lives that lead to their early demise, but, regardless, our time is unknown. That’s why it is so important to REALLY LIVE! Steve dying at the age of forty-four isn’t half as sad as many who die at eighty, without having ever done anything with their lives. As a Christian this is particularly important to me. I don’t know how long I have. I have the greatest message of love ever given. I hold in my hand something that has eternal consequences. Am I out there swimming, even when the weather is bad? Am I spending my time focused on what matters? Am I doing everything I can to preserve souls? Is my faith in Christ as infectious as Steve’s love of animals?

2. Steve died in a situation that he had every reason to think was safe. Perhaps that was part of the problem. When you are dancing with the crocs, you watch your step. When you are facing an obviously dangerous situation, you prepare yourself. You look at the scenarios. You plan. I doubt very much that Steve was foolhardy. I don’t think he went beyond what he thought was safe. According to what others have said, what he did was safe, but… I think Steve was an expert at estimating his risk. He had to be, but the lesson for me is that sometimes it is the thing we consider safe that get us in the end. It is easy to discount spiritual danger. It is easy to, in the excitement of the moment, ignore the possible consequences. A lot of people have been stung in the heart as a result. Sometimes what we consider to be safe is most dangerous of all. To put it another way, with the wrong attitude, nothing is safe!

For my part, I wouldn’t mind leaving this world the same way Steve did. I’d love to die in the middle of doing something bold for the passion of my life, which is Christ. What’s your passion? How much time are you really spending in pursuing it?

Recently, Sheila and I were out for a walk and we saw some massive, inky black plumes rising into the cloudless blue sky just a block or two from where we were. We decided to put our lunch date on hold and go see what was on fire.

As we started our pilgrimage to the site of the fire, many others joined us along the way. One man suggested that it was the rubber factory that was just over on the next block. I immediately prayed that it wasn’t! What a nasty problem that would have been! Finally, we got over onto Cawthra Road. It runs along the railroad tracks, so we had an unobstructed view of the fire a few hundred yards from us, on the other side of the tracks.

The fire was raging. It was so hot that piles of soot and debris rose hundreds of feet into the air before they began their slow, settling descent. By the time ten minutes had passed, we had talked to several groups of people trying to find out about the building. It’s amazing how a good fire builds an instant community of friends and onlookers!

At one point, we were talking to a couple of men who had grown up in the area and they told me that the building on fire was empty and at least a hundred years old. It went up like a matchbox!

While we were talking to these two “old timers” we found out quite a bit about the neighborhood. We found out about the old houses and how this area was all residential at one time. Then we learned about how, in the 50′s, the factories moved into the neighborhood and bought up many of the homes in order to make way for their massive structures. Most of these companies have
long since moved out of the city, but they still leave their old factory buildings behind like hulking corpses of another era. Many of them are now being fixed up into residential lofts and condos.

Interestingly, there was one man, out of all the other families, who refused to sell his house. Large sums of money were offered. Lots of pressure was applied. Houses were ripped down and this man’s next door neighbors became a large bakery and a paint factory. It is now, and has been for decades, the only house on the entire block of factories. I had noticed this house before and I wondered why it was there. It didn’t make sense to see this house surrounded by factories. Why would anyone want to live in that kind of setting? Now, it all made sense.

Some people might consider this man’s decision foolish, or stupid. After all, his property value went down, as did his ability to resell. I, on the other hand, think he is a hero. I love to see a person who stands up against the crowd, against the profit, and against the pressure, in order to do what they feel is right. I love people who take a stand on principle. I love
people who won’t be pushed around, or seduced into doing something they don’t want to do-especially when it costs them!

In my books there is nothing foolish about knowing what you have and then doing all you can to keep it. I, and every other Christian, could learn a thing or two from the man who owns the only house on Cawthra Road.