Tempered by Fire (Story)

I heard this story over the radio last year and it came to mind over the last few days, so I wanted to share it with my readers.

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A firefighter was going through a house that was completely destroyed by fire.

Sifting through the warm ash, his fingers found these white ceramic pieces.


All it took was lightly dusting the ash from them, and the pieces shown bright and beautiful, practically the same as the day they arrived at the house.

Everything else was gone.


Moved by what he had found, he asked the homeowner if he could keep one.


Surprised and still in shock over all she had lost... the homeowner mutely nodded her assent.


A few days later, that firefighter was speaking with some of his friends who were going through a very difficult period in their life. One had lost a job, the other ill, their roof leaked and the bills just kept piling up.....


The firefighter pulled the white ceramic piece from his pocket and held it up for them to see.


He explained how he came to find it.


Then, he explained why it meant so much to him.


"This was tempered in fire before it was ever brought into that house. While everything else in that house was destroyed by that terrible fire, these pieces survived. If they hadn't gone through the fire first, they would have been destroyed."

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Sometimes we need to go through one fire to become strong enough for even greater challenges in life that would otherwise destroy us completely.

-ESA