(My family and I were among the thousands of
people who lost their homes in the 2025
Eaton Canyon Fire in Altadena, California.)
The contents I dearly wanted to see
But it was locked and I forgot my key.
I asked an old friend if she was inclined
To guess in the mailbox what I might find.
Mary Beth worked for many years at JPL
And her response was basically, “Well . . .
Go ahead and open it up if you must
But it’ll likely be just ashes and dust.
Whatever the USPS might have shoved in,
It got hotter in there than the hottest oven.”
(It’s too bad I didn’t plan ahead in
Time to have put some bread in.)
