Story Break
The Importance Of Air
The first thing is, fire needs air. Your backpacking stove is a little cup to hold fire. And as stated earlier (we repeat for emphasis) fire needs air.
Fire does not need air the way Madonna needs fans. Fire does not need air the way smelt need water. Also, fire does not need air the way Herbie, my favorite hamster of all time, needed his cheek pouches. No, fire does not stuff itself full of Cheerios the way that Herbie crammed them into his face, making it bulge out and become gross and scary.
Fire does not need air the way my grandfather needed my grandmother, or the way my grandmother needed my grandfather, even though they were married for sixty years, and died within weeks of one another, one of physical causes and the other, my grandfather, of grief.
Fire does not need air the way a female mosquito needs blood to make babies. This is a little closer though. Fire does not need air the way a real estate agent needs a buyer, the way a car salesman needs a mark, the way a religion needs converts, or a dung beetle needs poop.
It is all economics. To fire, air is like a cup of quarters placed in front of a slot machine, and when fire gets air, it burns holes in everything it gets its hands on. Fire has no sense of proportion. It does not save for rainy days, and does not even think about them. You might, but fire doesn’t. When fire has air it goes flat out, racing for the finish line with everything it’s got. Fire has no self-control. But when fire can’t get this air, it pulls into itself like a starving baby and just dies.
Remember this.
When you set up your stove, be sure to protect it from wind and rain. Put it in a safe spot, on level ground. Carefully prepare the wind screen and deploy it properly. Fuel the stove, light it, and place your pot on it with pride. Then shroud it with the wind screen.
But remember this – fire needs air.
So ensure that your wind screen lets in a generous amount of fresh air around its bottom, and allows hot air to leave from the top. The stove will accept the fuel and welcome the air, and make the necessary introductions between the two. Fuel and air know exactly what to do when they meet, and prefer quiet moments to mingle and combust without interruptions or audiences.
Practice modesty and keep the stove covered. Remember that it is unseemly to pry. Fuel, air, and fire (their lovechild), prefer privacy, away from cold winds and intruding rain. Fire has no master or mistress, no friends or relatives. Fire will not serve you, but if you make an appropriate home for it, it will come and visit and its heat will prepare your food and drink. After the fire flickers out you can eat, honoring it with grateful thoughts in the silent evening light.