Our family was worried about the 100 year old oak tree in our backyard possibly getting hit by lightning and damaging out home. I was 8 years old when it finally happened! My mom had just picked up my sister Kathryn and I from our aunt’s house. Upon arriving at home and settling ourselves inside, it started to rain. Suddenly, as the rain began to fall, there was a huge flash of lightning and a large crackling noise. The oak tree had been hit by lightning and was on FIRE!! I jumped up and started to scream, startling the family! My mom began to panic and called my dad at work to see what she should do. My dad told here he was on his way home from work and advised NOT to CALL THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, as he was currently the Chief and knew he would never hear the end of the tree story from his fellow members. Our neighbor, Dave, was sitting on his front porch watching the lightning storm and saw it hit the tree, he quickly arrived to extinguish the fire.

When Dad arrived home the tree was smoldering and we let the rain put the fire out. Another neighbor returning home from work saw the tree and stopped to offer his assis-tance and later arrived with a bucket truck to cut down the tree. We watched in great sadness as the tree turned into a stump on the ground. It took us a little while to clean up the branches and leaves left over from the tree, but it got done. The hill looks a little empty without the oak tree, but we are happy that it was gone because it did not put the house in danger.

--Jessica Capone