{solsc} I Should #sol16

The March Slice of Life Challenge

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I should have major burn scars on the left side of my face and arm. I should...but I don't. 

I was 7 or 8 years old. I can't quite remember. But I remember that night as clearly as if it just happened. I guess you could say it was seared into my memory all those years ago. 

There wasn't anything unusual about this particular weekend camping trip. My three younger brothers and I had spent that Saturday swimming, fishing, playing on the playground, and running around playing hide-and-seek and other games. Dinner was over, and we were all sitting around the campfire...the fire that had been burning steady since Friday when we arrived. 

There were rules for being around the campfire. I was a rule follower. I can still hear my parents saying "Never run or walk between the campfire and the camp chairs. Always go behind the chairs. Always." And I always did...until that Saturday night. My brothers were sitting on the other side of campfire. They were teasing me about something, what I can't really remember. But as most sibling squabbles will go, at some point I reached my teasing limit. 

Jumping up from my camp chair,  eyes locked on the offending brother who was already planning his escape,  I began running around the crackling campfire, forgetting the rule about going behind the camp chairs. Forgetting about the extra long log that had been placed in the fire, the end sticking out. 

I don't necessarily remember tripping over the log. I DO remember lying on the ground, looking into the campfire, my left arm actually fully in the fire, the left side of my face laying full on the hot stone edging. I remember the heat. I remember the flames dancing around me. And then I remember my daddy picking me up, running toward the large water cooler we kept on the picnic table. I remember hearing him and my mommy as they quickly moved across the campsite, praying. I remember being held under the water cooler, pouring both ice cold water and prayers over my body.

I remember that I didn't have even a trace of a red mark. Anywhere. 

I should have major burn scars on the left side of my face and arm.  I should...but I don't.