One year ago, a twelve-year-old created the most memorable Christmas when he set his front lawn on fire. Accidentally, of course. In a Facebook post, his mother, Nissa-Lynn Parson reassures everyone that no one got hurt as she explains the entire hilarious story.
Cayden was an avid reader and fascinated by science. So when he asked for a magnifying glass for Christmas, his parents assumed he would use it for reading. Instead, he used it to experiment with lighting fires. On Christmas Day, he and his two brothers went outside to try and burn holes through a newspaper.
“Everything was under control,” said Parson in her post, “until the boys came running into the house telling us that a corner of the lawn was on fire and the Christmas lights were melting!”
Twelve-Year-Old Accidentally Sets the Lawn on Fire
She and her husband Justin ran outside. Their lawn was turning black with ash, including the Christmas lights that lined the walkway. They turned on the sprinklers and grabbed the hose, buckets, and blankets to smother the flames. They managed to stop the fire before it spread to anyone else’s lawns.
“What a sight to see — a bunch of people running around crazy trying to put a front lawn fire out while wearing matching Christmas jammies!” She was grateful that no one was hurt; after all, it was just an accident. When the boys were burning the newspaper, a gust of wind had caught the paper and blew embers onto the lawn. This caused the grass to go up in flames. [1]
“I want to reiterate this was an accident,” said Parson. “It could have been worse but it wasn’t. So instead of a tragedy it will now be a Christmas to remember! 2019: The Christmas the lawn lit on fire.”
Christmas Day was memorable to say the least!🔥My twelve year old son Cayden, who is an avid reader, an honor student,…
Posted by Nissa-Lynn Parson on Thursday, December 26, 2019
A Hilarious Christmas Story
Fortunately, the story had a happy ending, making it a hilarious tale to retell a year later. Cayden himself will probably never hear the end of it whenever the holiday season comes around. Good thing he got a piano keyboard, books, and robot building model kit for Christmas that year. He might want to take a break from the magnifying glass for a bit.
“Instead of a tragedy, it will now be a Christmas to remember,” said Parson.
She ended her post with a piece of wise parenting advice: “Oh and never buy a magnifying glass for your son!” [2]
How Magnifying Glasses Could Start Fires
Many people as kids have tried the magnifying glass-and-sun test. Hopefully, their results were less dramatic than Cayden’s. Flora Lichtman from NPR explains that this simple experiment is possible due to optics.
“We spoke with Tom Baer at Stanford, and he is a physicist who kindly explained what is going on when you’re doing this,” she said. “And I think, you know, most of us know that you’re bending the light to this focal point and that’s why it looks more concentrated and so you’ve got more light in a littler area. You’re squeezing more sunshine into a smaller area.” [3]
A magnifying glass can be used for more than a Sherlock Holmes costume or for kids to burn newspaper outside. You can use one to effectively start a fire for a camping trip or smores party. Here’s how:
- Gather small pieces of kindling, like dry leaves, pine needles, and strips of bark.
- Hold the magnifying glass over the pieces, angled so that the sun will shine through the glass.
- Keep the magnifying glass over the kindling until it begins to smolder.
- Blow on the embers until it bursts into flames.
- Add more tinder and wood, and enjoy the bonfire. [4]
Keep Reading: Mom Shares $9 Paycheck After Working Over 70 Hours as a Server
References
- “A 12-year-old got a magnifying glass for Christmas — and set his lawn on fire.” CNN. Alisha Ebrahimji. December 31, 2019.
- “Boy accidentally sets lawn on fire with magnifying glass he got as Christmas present, mother says.” CBS News. Danielle Garrand. December 30, 2019.
- “The Optics Of Setting Leaves Aflame.” NPR. May 13, 2011
- “Start a Fire with a Magnifying Glass Using These 3 Tips.” Outdoor Life. Tim MacWelch. July 11, 2017
