The
Phoenix
at 211 Azalea Lane
by Marcia M. Cham
The summer of 2003 Ken
and I lived for two months of my sabbatical time from full time ministry in a rental on Misty Mountain.
One day Ken and I admitted to each other that we felt like we were at home here in the beauty and peace of the Blue
Ridge — an area we camped in on many weekends when we lived in Hickory
some thirty years ago. So, I scheduled time with a realtor and we ended up buying a house on Misty Mountain overlooking the John’s
River Gorge. For two years we celebrated holidays in the house while we waited
for retirement from our jobs in the Boston area.
On June 5, 2005 at 1:30
pm with a rental truck packed to the gills with books and other heavy objects, we received a call from a Misty Mountain neighbor, “Your house
has just been destroyed by fire.” I responded with “Oh…….!” Shock set in, only tempered by the reality that no human life was taken. By 7 pm that evening a neighbor, that we’d never met, invited us to use their rental while we sorted
out the tragedy.
During a harried two weeks, we met with the insurance agents and they determined the fire was the result
of lightning and was completely destroyed. After interviewing builders and architects, we signed contracts and arranged for
the property to be cleared. October 15, 2005 the construction started.
We learned quickly about
mountain time building and no work during hunting season. But we also learned
to appreciate the trades and skills involved in building a house on a ridge. We
read an article about “10 ways to entertain yourself while your house is being built.” One idea was to photograph the workers. We photographed our
workers and the “hunks at 211 Azalea” hung over the fireplace for months.
We moved from rental to
rental until April 24, 2007, almost 2 years after the fire, then we moved into The Phoenix. And now more than a year later and having settled in, we invite the attendees of the
“May We Write Conference” to enjoy our house, the view and our hospitality.
-- Marcia and Ken Cham
