“I
Wish You Could Know”
I wish you could know what it's like to search a bedroom for a
trapped child with flames rolling above your head, your palms and knees
searing as you crawl, while the floor sags under your weight
as the
kitchen below you burns.
I wish you could comprehend a wife's horror, at 3 in the morning,
as I check her husband of 40 years for a pulse and find none. I start
CPR anyway, hoping to bring him back, knowing intuitively it is too
late, but wanting his wife and family to know that everything
possible was done to try to save his life.
I wish you knew the unique smell of burning insulation, the taste
of soot-filled mucus, the feeling of intense heat through your
turnout gear, the sound of flames crackling, the eeriness of being
able to see absolutely nothing in the dense smoke-conditions with
which I've become too familiar.
I wish you could understand how it feels to go to work in the
morning after having spent most of the night,
hot and
soaking wet, at a multiple alarm.
I wish you could read my thoughts as I respond to a building fire;
"Is this a false alarm or a working fire? How is the building
constructed? What hazards await me? Is anyone trapped?"
Or as I respond to a medical call; "What is wrong with the
patient? Is it minor or life-threatening? Is the caller really in distress
or is he waiting for us with a two-by-four or a gun?"
I wish you could be in the emergency room as the doctor pronounces
dead the beautiful five-year-old girl
that I
have been trying to save for the past 25 minutes,
who will
never go on her first date or again say the words, "I love you,
Mommy."
I wish you could know the frustration I feel in the cab of the
engine, squad, or my personal vehicle, with my foot pressing down hard on
the pedal, my arm tugging, again and again, at the air horn chain as you
fail to yield the right-of-way at an intersection or in traffic.
However, when you need us, your first comment upon our arrival will
be, "It took you forever to get here!"
I wish you could know my thoughts as I help extricate a teenage
girl from the remains of her automobile. "What if this were my
daughter, sister, my girlfriend, or a friend? What would her parents'
reaction be when they open the door to find a police officer with hat in
hand?"
I wish you could know how it feels to walk through the door and
greet my parents and family, not having the heart to tell them that I
nearly did not come back from the last call.
I wish you could know how it feels to dispatch officers, firemen,
and EMTs,
how our
heart drops when we call for them and no one answers back,
or to hear
a bone-chilling 9-1-1 call from a child or a wife in need of assistance.
I wish you could feel the hurt when people verbally, and sometimes
physically, abuse us or belittle what we do, or when they express their
attitude of "It will never happen to me."
I wish you could realize the physical, emotional, and mental drain
of missed meals, lost sleep, and forgone social activities, in addition to
all the tragedy my eyes have seen.
I wish you could know the bonds of brotherhood, the
self-satisfaction of saving a life, preserving someone's property, being
able to be there in times of crisis, or restoring order from chaos.
I wish you could understand what it feels like to have a little boy
tugging at your arm and asking, "Is Mommy okay?" …and to
understand how it feels not to be able to look into his eyes without tears
in your own, not knowing what to say…or to hold back a long-time friend
who watches as CPR is being performed on his buddy while they take him
away in an ambulance. You knew all along he did not have his seat belt
on…this is a sensation I have become all too familiar with.
Unless you have lived this kind of life, you will never truly understand
or appreciate who I am, who we are, or what our job really means to us...
We
wish you could though.
-Author
Unknown-
Being a Volunteer Fire Fighter
is about much more than putting out fires. The Volunteer Fire
Department of Newbold is a group of dedicated, highly trained citizens who
provide many services to our community. In addition to responding to
fires, our trained "First Responders" respond to all ambulance
calls in Newbold. We also conduct fire inspections of local
businesses, respond to vehicle accidents, and provide search and rescue
services. We offer excellent training to all of our members and
have instructors on staff. Many of our past volunteers have gone on
to full-time careers in fire fighting and emergency medical (ambulance)
service.
If you want to be a part of this valuable community service, or simply
wish to find out more information, please send us an email
or contact one of our members.
For a complete list of our members, click
here.
