After the Fire

I wanted to take a moment to update you all on my sister, and to thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for the kind generosity that so many of you have shown her.

On Tuesday, two weeks and a day after the fire, she was finally allowed back into her apartment. Sections of the floor are compromised, so we are limited in what we can take out, but were able to get several boxes/bags of smaller items. ⬇

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) Mary Rose joked that she felt like a thief in her own apartment while we were in there rummaging around 😂 It was such a wild mix of emotions, we'd see something we couldn't believe survived, then something we were devastated wouldn't be salvageable, then would see a cat toy 😢 It was a lot. The fire itself was only in her bathroom (left picture), but the main room/kitchen/her bedroom were severely smoke and water damaged, ⬇ 1y

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) including the shelf of her favorite books in her favorite editions 😞 The back room (the “snug“) is mostly just smoke, plus some smashing from the firefighters looking for fire. It's still a lot of feelings to process, but we are hoping to salvage a few more items this weekend. Then it will be a waiting game while her landlords figure out what they are doing with the building next. It's a historic building, one of the original ones to ⬇ 1y

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) the village, built in the early 1800s, so they really want to save it, but it's going to involve a LOT of work. Thankfully, the front part of the building seems to be structurally okay, just severely smoke damaged. It will be a big process. For now, she is safe and secure at Dad and Mom's, and taking some time to figure out where she goes from here!

⬇ ⬇ 1y

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TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) But thank you, thank you, thank you, to all of you who have sent books, puzzles, small gifts, prayers, and good thoughts. Mary Rose has been so genuinely overwhelmed by the thoughtful generosity from people she's never met. It means so much to me, and I have loved hearing stories from those of you who have had someone do you a good turn during a hard time and are glad for an opportunity to pay it forward. ⬇ 1y

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) Hopefully Mary Rose and I can do the same for others in the future as well. This is such a wonderful community, and I'm so thankful to be a part of it. ❤ ❤ ❤ You all are amazing!!! 1y

TheAromaofBooks PS To clarify, while the fire was only in her bathroom in her apartment, the main fire itself was in the entire area directly below her apartment, which is in the second story. It started right below her bathroom/kitchen, and went up through that wall into the bathroom and actually on up into the attic of the building as well. Kind of wild the way it moved through the space!!! 1y

wordslinger42 I will keep saying prayers for her as she figures out what's next for her 💜💜💜 1y

AmyG Oh no. I had no idea. I am happy to hear she is safe….most of all. Wishing her all the best. 1y

SonjaBolon Surviving such a disaster really changes one‘s perspective. I hope and pray she will find many blessing coming her way after such a huge loss. ❤️🥰❤️ 1y

BarbaraJean Oh, what a rollercoaster of emotions this must be. I'm glad she's been able to salvage some things... will continue to keep her in my prayers through the next steps. 1y

Kenyazero Wow! That is so much to be dealing with. So many ups and downs and so much waiting. Glad she‘s doing alright in the face of such a difficult time. ❤️ 1y

Gissy I didn‘t know but I‘m glad she is safe. This will be a long process and it is so good she has you and others to that emotional support because this is like a grief process, even though life is the most important thing to preserve, still, those things were full of memories, they were part of her. So good she has this attitude to look forward and move on. Do you need that Litsy community help in something she might need. Please let us know.♥️ 1y

Gissy Maybe it‘s not the appropriate time now but latter we can even donate books after knowing her preferences, if she is a reader, well books can always bring some king of happiness♥️ 1y

Roary47 I‘m so glad she was able to get some of her items. What an emotional toll though at the same time. My prayers continue to be with you/ you sister while next steps on what to do next get ironed out. 💛 1y

TheLudicReader Most importantly, she is safe. Thanks for the update. 1y

Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick I'm just seeing what happened, and my heart goes out to her. Sending good vibes and a comforting hug to her as she navigates through this. And one to you for being a loving & supportive sister to her. 💞 1y

SamAnne @TheAromaofBooks I‘ve been traveling and not on Litsy as much. Had no idea. How heartbreaking. Thoughts with both of you. 1y

julieclair Thank you for this update, Sarah. Such devastation. My prayers continue for Mary Rose as she tries to come to terms with all of this. 💙🙏💙 1y

TheAromaofBooks Thank you all so much!!! We made another trip up to the apartment yesterday and retrieved some more things, some of which we lowered out the window to avoid having to cross the weakest section of floor too many times. Now we are in a waiting game while her landlords work with insurance adjusters and contractors to get some kind of timeline together. At some point, pretty much everything left in her apartment needs to be trashed, but they want to ⬇ 1y

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) wait until the floors have been more stabilized, so who knows when that will happen. It's been really hard, but we are getting through it. Part of the hard is realizing all the “what ifs“. So, so thankful that she is safe and well!!! Thank you all again for your prayers and thoughts; it really does mean so so much. ❤ ❤ ❤ 1y

TheAromaofBooks @wordslinger42 @AmyG @SonjaBolon @BarbaraJean @Kenyazero @Gissy @Roary47 @TheLudicReader @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick @SamAnne @julieclair 1y

julieclair This is so unbelievable. In the blink of an eye, her life turned upside down. And I can imagine thinking about the “what ifs” is a very emotional experience. 1y

Jari-chan Lots of strength and love for you all 🙏❤️ 1y

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