My dad became a fireman when I was 7 and its a pretty crazy gig, to say the least. That being said, I wouldn't trade it for anything and I'm proud of my dad for the work he does every day. Here are 9 things I know to be true as a fireman's daughter.
1. You spend A LOT of time around the station growing up.
And you miss those times incredibly when you grow up and go to college. Time spent at the station is a lot of things, but boring isn't one of them. And it's nice to spend time with your dad (or mom) in the place he practically lives at most of the time.
2. You’ve gotten to ride in the big red (or yellow) truck at least once and it was awesome.
I don't care what anybody says, even sitting in the firetruck is freakin cool.
3. You have at least one black and white American flag in your house with one red stripe down the middle.
This might have only become popular recently but I know there are at least 20 of these things in my house. T-shirts, sweatshirts, signs, stickers, anything you can think of and all because we love our fireman.
4. You know the fire safety plan like the back of your hand.
If you're a firefighters kid and you haven't drilled the emergency plan over and over again, are you really even a firefighters kid? The answer is no, because if you don't know to feel the door handle with the back of your hand before opening a door during a fire, what are you even doing. Fire safety is incredibly important and could be the difference between life and death in an emergency situation, you should know it regardless, but after the training, these guys go through to become firemen, you know damn well their kids are gonna know what to do during a fire.
5. You watch the other fire guys grow from coworkers to family.
My dad became a joined the department when I was pretty small, so the guys that stuck it out there with him have watched me grow up. They've been there for the big stuff, they've helped my dad fix my car and they've hung out around the house. They made my grad party a huge success and it wouldn't have been the same without all of their help. Growing up around the station, I watched these guys go from just coworkers to a big giant family and I love that those guys have my dad's back when it matters most.
6. You worry every time their pager goes off.
Firefighting is an insanely dangerous job. Anytime they leave the house with that pager in their hand, there are a million possibilities of what might happen. After a while, the shrill beeping of that pager starts to send intense worry through your body but you suck it up because if they can run toward the danger when everybody else is running away, you can keep it together and be waiting for them when they get home.
7. You make your firefighter keepsakes so they can have a little piece of home during those long 24-hour shifts.
Tie blankets, picture frames, arts and crafts, or little notes, anything they can keep with them at the station is appreciated because it means they can have that much more of home with them while they're on the job. I want my dad to know that I'm thinking about him while he's out there doing what he does best because maybe that might help ensure that he makes it home safe at the end of the day.
8. You admire the strength and selflessness it takes to do their impossible job every day.
It takes a lot to be able to put your life on the line to protect strangers, but for people like my dad, it comes naturally because it just seems like the right thing to do. They run into dangerous situations while anybody else runs away from them and it takes insane amounts of courage to do so without a second thought. No amount of training can teach you that kind of selflessness, it's already instilled in the hearts of our nation's heroes.
9. You have even more respect for the men and women who risk their lives every day to help others because you know exactly what they’re risking every time they walk out the door.
Like I said, being a fireman is dangerous, but people like my dad go out and take on the daunting task of saving peoples lives everyday anyways. These men and women each have families of their own, and every shift, they put their lives at risk to keep other peoples families safe too because it's the right thing to do. My dad's job takes a toll on him, as it does every other firefighter across the country, but he shoulders that burden to try to make the world a better place. The respect I have for people willing to risk everything in order to give someone else the chance to live another day is immeasurable and I am so thankful that I have a person like that as my dad.
Love you, Dad,
Chey
*Note: If you don't pull over for firetrucks, ambulances, and policeman, you're an a**hole and you need to stop.*
