Yet beneath the ash, something steadier emerged. Neighbors who had never spoken shared chargers, food, and phone calls. Strangers opened their doors to families with nowhere to go. Firefighters, hollow-eyed and hoarse, were met with applause that broke into sobs. No one pretended the losses were small, or that answers would come quickly. But in the smoke-thick morning, as lists of the missing grew shorter and shelters grew louder, the city discovered that survival was not just about what had burned, but about who refused to let each other face the ruins alone.
Skyline of Ash and Echoes – Page 2 of 2 – Vibrant Social Chronicles
