AND IT WANTS TO LIVE

THE SOCK ON THE HEATER — A BRONX WARNING WE ALL NEED TO HEAR

Neighbors, this one is real.
This is the kind of story that happens in our community every winter — not because people are careless, but because life is hard, people are tired, and warmth is a basic need.

Max D came home exhausted after a long day doing construction work on Burnside with a few guys he knew from up North. His bones were cold. His clothes were stiff. All he wanted was heat and a few minutes of rest.

Earlier that day he had cracked the top bathroom window. Now the temperature dropped, and the window was stuck open. He didn’t have the strength to climb over the tub and fight it shut.

So he did what many of us have done at least once:
He turned on all four stove burners for warmth.

He made himself a hot chocolate — milk, sugar, his favorite mug — and went to the bedroom to watch the news. But the cold was still in the walls. It wouldn’t leave.

So he reached for the quickest fix…

The electric heater.

Everybody knows how fast those things heat up a room.
Everybody also knows they can be dangerous —
but cold has a way of making you forget danger.

Max laid down, finally feeling the warmth he needed.
As he turned his head on the pillow, he felt something under it — a sock.
Annoyed, tired, half asleep, he tossed it onto the floor.

At least… he thought it hit the floor.

He drifted off.

The next morning, the firefighters on the news reported a tragedy:

A Bronx building burned down overnight after a sock fell onto an electric heater.

Max never realized it was his.

FIRE HAS A LIFE OF ITS OWN — AND IT WANTS TO LIVE

Fire doesn’t wait.
It doesn’t think.
It doesn’t give warnings.

It feeds.
It spreads.
And the moment it finds something to grab onto — cloth, paper, wood —
it comes alive.

Fire has one instinct:
to grow.

And once it starts, it doesn’t stop until it takes everything.

THIS ISN’T ABOUT BLAME — IT’S ABOUT REALITY

People use ovens when the boiler breaks.
People use heaters because the landlord ignores complaints.
People fall asleep because they’re exhausted from double shifts.

That’s the Bronx.
That’s real life.
That’s survival.

But electric heaters don’t forgive mistakes.
They don’t care if you’re tired.
They don’t care if you’re cold.
They don’t care if you’re doing your best.

One sock.
One blanket.
One moment.

And everything can disappear.

BEFORE YOU SLEEP TONIGHT, DO THIS:

✔ Keep the heater three feet away from anything
✔ Never put clothes, socks, towels, or blankets near it
✔ Don’t leave it on overnight
✔ Make sure the plug isn’t loose or sparking
✔ Don’t use extension cords — they overheat
✔ And if you’re too tired to stay awake, turn it off

Tonight, it could be Max.
Tomorrow, it could be any of us.

We look out for each other here.
Let’s stay warm — but stay alive.

—Eterna