Blaze of Glory

Hello Everyone:

It looks like Chanukah is going out in a blaze of glory, literally.  Yesterday evening mom and I lit the candles, as usual.  We sat for a few minutes to watch them burn, then went to go make dinner.  About I don't know how many minutes later, mom said she smelled something burning.  I suggested she check the oven or the stove.  No, nothing there.  I smelled something too but didn't make much of it. I turned my head to check on the candles when I saw a small fire had started.  One of the candles fell over onto a the tablecloth covering an end table and started a small blaze.  I quickly took action to snuff out the fire.  It some time and mom called patrol, who summoned the fire department.  I manage to put out the fire before patrol, the LAFD, and maintenance arrived.  Fortunately, no one was hurt and there was no major damage, just smoke damage to the Menorahs.  Needless to say, our nerves were a little shot.  I took a swig of the 192 to calm myself.  Mom started obsessing over when the candles were lit, how long they burned before the fire started, why did the firefighter put out the remaining candles, et cetera.  I finally had to tell her to quit obsessing.  Life and limb take precedence over religious law.  Yes, the candles are suppose to burn for at least a half hour in order to fulfill the commandment but not at risk to life or limb.  Certainly burning one's house to cinder is not part of the observance.  I was incredulous that mom would put a priority on religious observance over preservation of life and limb.  Then she briefly wondered why she called patrol in the first place. This led me to think that if someone dropped from a heart attack, she'd ignore it or she'd first make sure that some religious practice was properly observed first.  The good news in all this is everyone is fine and life goes on.  Now, I'm off to sis's for dinner.