I'd Rather be Lucky, then Safe

You never told me about about the winch line breaking under the strain either or how lucky you were to only be sore and bruised. I lost a Cousin when a cable snapped and he never got to see his son Jeff that was born shortly after you were born or watch his 2 little daughters grow up. Blaze do you remember that little boy that reach over to speared your piece of meat, when it jumped off your plate and you both were learning to use a fork? Sometimes Mom's just don't want to hear the things that have happened in their sons life's and would rather put their hands over their ears and go "La,La,La."

Mom

When I read your comment I actually chuckled out loud to myself. While I have never had any close calls because I had been out drinking crazy some night late and drove off a cliff. Like so many people we have retrieved from the brink of death while we served together in the fire department. There have been so many other times when I probably shouldn't have been able to walk away from a fire incident, they are to numerous to count...

...the night the Takilma store burnt down. I was kneeing down in the front doorway threshold while heavy flames shot out over my head. Still by myself, I had a 1 ½ hose line in my hands and was flowing water straight into the center of the old building and not even making a dent in the flame volume. Yes we had all been trained to watch for all the signs of building collapse before hand, but without warning the whole front portion of the two story building gave way and fell outwards towards my engine.

Like in a Road Runner cartoon, when the coyote is saved from sure death when the building falls on him. Wylie Coyote would always be standing right where an open window was when the building came crumbling down around him. I too was saved that night because I was standing in the door opening. The force of the wall falling down and hitting the ground jerked the nozzle from of my hands. The wall landed with such a tremendous thud and a huge shower of sparks rolled over me as I hunkered down. The flames increased significantly with the breath of fresh air that was provided to them. It got real hot, real fast as I leaped and hop-scotched over the hotter spots burning on the downed wall. The guys were coming for me just as I dove out of the wall of flames. They patted out the burning embers that were still burning on my turn-outs with their gloved hands. They were all asking at one time if I was ok. I was ok. They handed me another hose line and I went to work putting that damn wall out that had tried to kill me.

I don’t tell you this story to try and worry or scare you. I tell you mom,  and everybody else reading this story.  I have learned one thing for a “fact” while serving in the fire service and living my life… “When it is your time to go, you will go. When it’s not your time, you won’t” I have seen this scenario play out so many times in my life I have actually stopped worrying about dieing. I know when it is my time, it will be my time. I have always depended far more on being lucky, then being too afraid to do anything because I wanted to stay safe.