fuegito lindo
in journal
one of the best things about winter is sitting in front of the fireplace.
as a kid, our main fireplace was in the basement and i have so many memories of sitting in front of it, watching my dad build the fire and being told repeatedly to be careful and not touch the various hot iron tools he used that were so tempting to my little fingers.. a cute little broom and shovel, tongs to lift the logs, a sharp iron stick to jab and poke at the logs. my dad would explain how a fire should be built, but clearly it went in one ear and out the other because a few weeks ago i made a fire with all the heavy logs on the bottom and the kindling balanced delicately on top, ha.
now, our basement fireplace is largely empty, but the fireplace in the study is used and how! here’s a little fifteen second clip of it from a few nights ago – a more perfect fire i’ve never seen. (not made by me, btw! 
) there’s nothing like the snapping, popping, weezing, sighing, and crackling sounds of the fireplace.
all spring and summer long my dad would go out in the woods, cutting fallen tree limbs and perilously leaning trees into neat little piles. i’m glad to say he built such a stockpile that we still have enough to last us through this winter, even enough for my fire needs. & on top of the goodness of the fireplaces in the house, tonight we tried out the wood-burning stove in the studio and wow. it’s amazing how much heat can come out of a little box filled with burning wood, no electricity or anything. nothing fancy, but ay immediately we were daydreaming of cooking some food right on the soapstone top of the stove, making some tea, and having a delicious meal.
happy feb. 1st ~
