The Fire That Tested What I Value Most

Almost three weeks ago, a fire broke out just a few houses away from ours. Until now, whenever I step outside or pass by our street, I still hear our neighbors talking about it. Replaying how it started. How big it got. How frightening it was.

It was a Saturday morning. I had just gone to bed at around 6 AM after finishing some work. Everyone in the house was still asleep since it was the weekend. At around 8 AM, I was suddenly awakened by my mom bursting into the room. She didn’t even bother to knock. She just pushed the door open and shouted..

“There’s a fire, hurry up!”

Still half-asleep, I jumped out of bed in my PJs and socks. I didn’t even bother turning off the aircon. I grabbed my phone from the side of my bed and hurried out.

The first thing that came to my mind was my pet, so I carried him with me as I went to the living room, where my mom and sisters were already panicking.

Our house is at the very end of the street. That’s usually peaceful, but in that moment it was terrifying. If the fire spread quickly and reached the house beside us, it would be hard for us to escape. That thought made me more nervous.

My dad, on the other hand, was already outside helping the neighbors. He was the one who saw the fire first, and he made sure to warn everyone nearby. And that actually made my mom mad. She found out about the fire late, not from my dad, but from neighbors shouting “Sunog!” (fire). She had even checked from the restroom window, then the balcony, before realizing it was already just three or four houses away. She was furious and scared at the same time.

_{the smoke, view from our balcony}

Later on, my dad explained. He saw how close the fire already was to the neighbors, and some of them were still asleep. There were a lot of children inside those houses, and no one was panicking yet, even though the fire was already getting big. He shouted, woke them up, and made sure they were aware first. And honestly, I understood his logic. We were still safe. We had a few more minutes. And in that moment, he chose to make sure others were safe too.

What made us even more anxious was knowing that right behind the burning house was a liquid petroleum gas (LPG) shop!

Our family went out to secure a spot where we're safe. My mom and sisters had their bags with them, carrying what they thought were essentials. And me? I was just standing there, holding my pet and my phone.

I didn’t bring anything else. My mom told me to get my essentials quickly. So, I rushed back inside, and saw the house was wide open with the aircon still running. My mind went blank. What should I take? What should I save? I have laptops, gadgets, heavy coin banks, and even documents, but the more I think about it, the harder it was to decide. My brain wasn’t “braining.” The smoke outside and the shouts of our neighbors made it hard to think clearly.

In the end, I grabbed one of my bags, stuffed in my gadgets and chargers, especially the ones I use for work, then picked up my wallet and IDs. I told myself that those are enough. I left behind my coin banks that I had been filling for months because they were too heavy to carry. The other files could be replaced.

What mattered to me was making sure my family and pets were safe. That realization hit me hard. Everything we own is temporary. At the end of the day, they’re just “things.” I wasn’t as attached to them as I thought. But others weren’t as lucky that day.

Outside, things were chaotic. The fire was growing. The smoke was thick, and people were crying. My sister’s playmate was in tears because she woke up to her mom pulling her out of bed because of the fire. That panic… that fear… I felt it too.

Then my aunt suddenly rushed near our house. She works near our place and ran over when she heard there was a fire. She thought it had already reached us and wanted to make sure we're okay. I'll never forget that moment. Her face was pale... her heavy breathing from running... all because she cares.

When the fire trucks finally arrived, we felt a little relief... only to find out they didn’t have water. Neighbors helped with buckets of water, while the smoke grew thicker, and while my mom kept repeating asking the same questions... Why do we live here? Why at the very end of the street?

More fire trucks eventually came and soon after, the fire was finally put out. But two houses down, and another one badly damaged. Had the fire reached the other two houses, ours would have been next. All because of a candle. So small and yet it changed so many lives that day.

That morning changed the way I looked at things. I realized how quickly everything can disappear. And I realized, too, that it’s not the material things we’ll fight to save in moments like this. It’s the people we love.

Whenever that morning comes to mind, I'm reminded of what really matters.