The Creation Of The Firefighter

When the Lord was creating fire fighters,

he was into his sixth day of overtime when an angel appeared and said, "You're doing a lot of fiddling around on this one."

And the Lord said, "Have you read the specification on this person? Firefighters have to be able to go for hours fighting fires or tending to a person that the usual everyday person would never touch,

while putting in the back of their minds the circumstances. They have to be able to move at a second's notice and not think twice of what they are about to do, no matter what danger.

They have to be in top physical condition at all times, running on half-eaten meals, and they must have six pairs of hands. The angel shook her head slowly and said, "Six pairs of hands...no way."

"It's not the hands that are causing me problems," said the Lord,

"it's the three pairs of eyes a firefighter has to have." "That's on the standard model?" asked the angel.

The Lord nodded. "One pair of eyes to see through the fire and where they and their fellow fire fighters should fight the fire next.

The second pair here in the side of the head to see their fellow firefighters and keep them safe.

And the third pair of eyes in the front so that they can look for the victims caught in the fire who need their help."

"Lord," said the angel, touching his sleeve, "rest and work on this tomorrow."

"I can't," said the Lord, "I already have a model that can carry a 250-pound man down a flight of stairs to safety from a burning building, and can feed a family of five on a civil service paycheck."

The angel circled the model of the fire fighter very slowly; "Can it think?" "You bet," said the Lord.

"They can tell you the elements of a hundred fires and can recite procedures in their sleep that are needed to care for a person until they reach the hospital. And all the while they have to keep their wits about them.

Fire fighters also have phenomenal personal control. They can deal with a scene full of pain and hurt, coaxing a child's mother into letting go of the child so that they can care for the child in need. And still they rarely get the recognition for a job well done from anybody, other than from fellow firefighters."

Finally, the angel bent over and ran her finger across the cheek of the fire fighter. "There's a leak," she pronounced. "Lord, it's a tear. What's the tear for?"

"It's a tear from bottled-up emotions for fallen comrades.
A tear for commitment to that funny piece of cloth called the flag.
It's a tear for all the pain and suffering they have encountered.
And it's a tear for their commitment to caring for and saving lives of their fellow man!"

"What a wonderful feature. "Lord, you're a genius", said the angel. The Lord looked very somber at the angel and said, "I didn't put it there."

Billy the Fireman

The 26-year-old mother stared down at her son who was dying of terminal leukemia. Although her heart was filled with sadness, she also had a strong feeling of determination.

Like any parent she wanted her son to grow up and fulfill all his dreams. Now that was no longer possible. The leukemia would see to that. But she still wanted her son's dreams to come true. She took her son's hand and asked,

"Billy, did you ever think about what you wanted to be once you grew up?

Did you ever dream and wish what you would do with your life?"

"Mommy, I always wanted to be a fireman when I grew up."

Mom smiled back and said, "Let's see if we can make your wish come true,"

Later that day she went to her local fire department in Phoenix, Arizona, where she met Fireman Bob, who had a heart as big as Phoenix. She explained her son's final wish and asked if it might be possible to give her six-year-old son a ride around the block on a fire engine.

Fireman Bob said, "Look, we can do better than that. If you'll have your son ready at seven o'clock Wednesday morning, we'll make him an honorary fireman for the whole day. He can come down to the fire station, eat with us, go out on all the fire calls, the whole nine yards!

"And if you'll give us his sizes, we'll get a real fire uniform for him, with a real fire hat - not a toy one - with the emblem of the Phoenix Fire Department on it, a yellow slicker like we wear and rubber boots. They're all manufactured right here in Phoenix, so we can get them fast."

Three days later Fireman Bob picked up Billy, dressed him in his fire uniform and escorted him from his hospital bed to the waiting hook and ladder truck. Billy got to sit on the back of the truck and help steer it back to the fire station.

He was in heaven. There were three fire calls in Phoenix that day and Billy got to go out on all three calls. He rode in the different fire
engines, the paramedic's van and even the fire chief's car. He was also video taped for the local news program.

Having his dream come true, with all the love and attention that was lavished upon him, so deeply touched Billy that he lived three months longer than any doctor thought possible.

One night all of his vital signs began to drop dramatically and the head nurse, who believed in the hospice concept that no one should die alone, began to call the family members to the hospital.

Then she remembered the day Billy had spent as a fireman, so she called the fire chief and asked if it would be possible to send a fireman in uniform to the hospital to be with Billy as he made his transition.

The chief replied, " We can do better than that. We'll be there in five minutes. Will you please do me a favor? When you hear the sirens screaming and see the lights flashing, will you announce over the PA system that there is not a fire?" It's just the fire department coming to see one of it's finest members one more time. And will you open the window to his room? Thanks."

About five minutes later a hook and ladder truck arrived at the hospital, extended its ladder up to Billy's third floor open window and 16 firefighters climbed up the ladder into Billy's room. With his mother's permission, they hugged him and held him and told him how much they loved him.

With his dying breath, Billy looked up at the fire chief and said, "Chief, am I really a fireman now?"

"Billy, you are," the chief said.

With those words, Billy smiled and closed his eyes one last time.

To Be A FIREMAN
By: Mark (Cookie) - Station 44, USA

Why am I here?
What am I doing? Am I crazy?
I'm sure these are questions we all ask ourselves often.
Why do we go running into situations that everyone else runs away from?
Why do I risk my life by running into a burning building, knowing that at any moment an unpredictable might happen: the floor may give way, the roof may tumble on me, the fire may engulf me.
I put my complete faith in my apparatus and my mate, cause if either of them fail I will probably die; if my equipment fails, I'm practically stuffed, and if my buddy gets stuck and can't come out, I don't come out 'cause I will never leave him. Why do I go to a car crash caused by a drunk or careless driver, to try and help them have another chance at life, when they may have killed an innocent life who could've been my friend, colleague or family member?
Why do I miss sleep, food, and quality time for some punk who has arsoned a building or hillside?
I don't know why I do, but I can't quit it, for it's in my blood to help. I often say "I'm not responding today, I'm gonna have a break," but when the siren goes, I can't resist, I have to go and help.
I'm here for a reason, "to protect life and property and do whatever is humanitarian possible to do it."
I'm here for my community, a community I grew up in, a community where I know lots of people, a community that knows me.
A community that pleads for us to make things right when they are in need.
By being a fireman I have seen a lot of things. I've walked into peoples lives and homes when they are in need and are vulnerable, and often we are their last line of hope.
It has made me appreciate life a lot more, but made me realize how delicate life can be, and even more aware how dangerous life as a fireman is.
It has made me aware that the reality of me dying for someone else's muck up is high.
For a fireman, no matter how fit, wealthy, or smart you are, it's possible that death is only a matter of minutes away.

The Little Firefighter
from askmen.com

A firefighter is working on the engine outside the station when he notices a little girl next door in a little red wagon with little ladders hung off of the side and a garden hose tightly coiled in the middle. The girl is wearing a firefighter's helmet and has the wagon tied to a dog and a cat.
The firefighter walks over to take a closer look. "That sure is a nice fire truck," the firefighter says, with admiration.

"Thanks," the little girl says.

The firefighter looks a little closer and notices the girl has tied the wagon to the dog's collar and to the cat's testicles.

"Little partner," the firefighter says, "I don't want to tell you how to run your fire truck, but if you were to tie that rope around the cat's collar, I think you could go faster."

The little girl says, "You're probably right, but then I wouldn't have a siren."

THE VOLUNTEER FIREMAN

Volunteer Firemen are a breed unto themselves.

Whoever heard of a man
who is willing to be on twenty-four hour duty
without pay for the dubious privilege of protecting his neighbor's property?

Whoever heard of a man
who will dash from his desk and ride a "fire wagon" to the scene of an alarm ruining his suit,
neglecting his business, risking his life and exhausting himself physically, not for money but
because he believes in serving his community?

Whoever heard of a man
who will give up his favorite TV show, postpone some reading
or "do-it-yourself" house chores he's been planning
(plus sacrificing evenings with his wife and children) just to attend a meeting
where he learns how to function as a volunteer servant in behalf of his fellowmen?

Whoever heard (in this day and age) of a man
who is crazy enough to be worrying about the other fellow?

Well, if you don't know the answer to those questions,
look around our firehouse. You'll see people who aren't out protesting and demonstrating and
complaining because they're too busy living up to the image of a good Filipino.

You'll see people whose forefathers were made of the same stuff and
that's why we have inherited this wonderful land; also, people just like
yourself who care what happens to their neighbors, their community and their country.

If you have some articles please feel free to email it to us, fed.removeme@federationfire.org