The Creation of the Fire Fighter
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? Fire fighters
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 just 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 fire
fighter has to have."
"That's on the standard model?" asked the angel.
The Lord nodded. "One pair to see through the fire and where
they and their fellow fire fighters should fight the fire next.
Another pair here in the side of the head to see their fellow
fire fighters and keep them safe. And another 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 fire
fighters."
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
American 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 somber and said, "I didn't put it there."

Author Unknown