a white knight upon a firey steed

I’ve been sitting up working on finances and watching a show called American Loggers on Discovery Channel. One of the employees on the company lost his house to a fire. He’s a worker who lives up at a logging camp and received the news from his boss. He met up with his girlfriend at the base camp, where she told him the place was flattened. Everything was gone. I’ve seen houses destroyed by fire. I’ve seen houses the fire company couldn’t salvage and everything was destroyed. I thought I knew what to expect.

I was wrong. The house wasn’t flattened by the overhaul or hose water or any offensive attack. My first reaction was anger. "Where were the firefighters? Where was the department?" I won’t admit to being anything but the daughter of a fire commissioner, the daughter of a life-term volunteer. But I couldn’t even seen truck tracks or hose indents, or really any type of defensive attempt. Not being part of the logging company story, they didn’t get into detail about the fire and I understand that. They didn’t explain how it started, except to say no one was hurt. Nothing else was said. The footage they did show of the house makes it look like they just let the place burn itself out. I know sometimes this happens. A fire gets out of control and the only thing to do is prevent it from spreading then wait for it to flame out. Even still, that house was destroyed. I was angry. Where was the fire department? What was the problem?

I had to remind myself this occurred in a small town in Maine. When I mean small, I mean the town population is smaller that the student population at my college. My college town is less than a third of their size, and they have only 6 fire vehicles. It would have taken time for someone to call for help and then for help to arrive. Its a different lifestyle and way of life.

Even so, it made me angry. The anger dissipates and I’m left feeling sad for the man and his family, but proud of my father and the work he does. He’s a commissioner now, but he didn’t get there by talking smooth or greasing palms. He joined up at 15 and worked as an interior firefighter until I was born. He still goes out and drives the trucks on nights when most men stay in bed. Driving the truck is just as important as the guy running into the fire. Interior firemen take a hose with them. Who do you think is at the other end of that hose, making sure the water doesn’t run out? Who does that interior firefighter trust, with his life, as he enters a burning building with only a rubber hose to protect him? The Dalmatian? They’re cute, but they can’t connect a hose or turn a valve. Its a lot of responsibility to hold a man’s life in your hands like that. And to know that if you let him down, he could be seriously injured or even die. Its not something anyone does lightly.

I just love my dad so much.
Where have all the good men gone
And where are all the gods?
Where’s the street-wise Hercules
To fight the rising odds?
Isn’t there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night I I toss and turn and dream of what I need

I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ’til the end of the night
He’s gotta be strong
And he’s gotta be fast
And he’s gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ’til the morning light
He’s gotta be sure
And it’s gotta be soon
And he’s gotta be larger than life

Somewhere after midnight
In my wildest fantasy
Somewhere just beyond my reach
There’s someone reaching back for me
Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat
It’s gonna take a superman to sweep me off my feet

Up where the mountains meet the heavens above
Out where the lightning splits the sea
I would swear that there’s someone somewhere
Watching me

Through the wind and the chill and the rain
And the storm and the flood
I can feel his approach
Like the fire in my blood

I Need A Hero ~ Frou Frou