Over Active Imagination

A good imagination in my line of work, is essential. I will go so far as to say it’s a gift.
As a writer, it helps me to think of things to write about. And when I write, my imagination helps me to make non-intuitive leaps to connect things that most folks wouldn’t ordinarily connect. 
But an overactive imagination is not always an asset, especially in other lines of work; plumbing for example. 
Last week our gas stove died a few days before Thanksgiving and we were supposed to take turkey for a lunch with other members of Jilda’s family.
She had a fresh turkey breast as big as a clydesdale sitting on the counter and when she turned the oven on, nothing happened.
That’s strange, she said. She turned it off and tried again. Something’s not right, I heard her say with more than a little panic creeping into her voice.
We called all our kinfolks who lived nearby and found a working oven which saved the day. 
The next day she did research and found the stove she wanted, and we ordered it.
I contacted our nephew Haven who is a plumber and gas man, so he put us on his work list.
This afternoon the installation went off without a hitch. All the burners sprang to life as expected, but when he turned the oven on, something wasn’t right.
All of a sudden we began to smell smoke and it was not just the smell of a new oven. 
My imagination leapt into action. I was thinking not just house fire, but a conflagration that would level our entire community. I’d have to notify neighbors, fire departments, and possibly FEMA.
I was thinking about the things in the house that I should try to save. I’ll need to grab the critters,  my backup computer drive so I can save my data, pictures, music, and all the words I’ve written in the past 50 years, my guitar, and.......
Haven on the other hand, realized that it was probably a small piece of cardboard that had fallen through the cracks near the oven burners.
A few seconds later he used his pliers to fetch a smoldering piece of cardboard about the size of a playing card and tossed it into the sink.
I felt a little foolish, but then my imagination told me I could use this to write a blog entry. I smiled at the thought.