MAGGIE
By,
Kathleene S. Baker

"Mom, I just got accepted to Fire School! Oh, I can hardly wait!" Another chapter was about to be written in the life of a beautiful, young woman named Maggie.

Her mother’s heart all but stopped, although Maggie would never know. "I’m so proud of you." She smiled and hugged her only daughter.

******************

Maggie attended one year at Texas Tech. University before deciding four years of college was not her forte. That squelched her dream of becoming a registered nurse. Even so, she had plenty of options to explore.

Soon she was studying to become an Emergency Medical Technician. She loved the training as well as the job she landed upon passing her state exams. Still, the longer she worked "hands on" the more she longed to accomplish.

Maggie went on to become a Paramedic and excelled in the occupation, but after a period of time she set her sights on yet another goal. She applied and was accepted to Fire School. Talk about a challenge! The training is grueling for men, not to mention Maggie being female and weighing in at 120 pounds. No exceptions are made for women; they must be able to perform the same tasks as their male counterparts.

All too soon for her parents, Maggie was graduating from Fire School. Her mother and my friend, Carol, had many reservations about the dangers her lovely daughter would encounter on a regular basis. Who could blame her?

Along the way Maggie has recounted some hair-raising stories, which leaves one to consider what she conveniently omits. Being a sensitive young lady, I’m sure she shields her parents if possible. No doubt, in her line of work some things are better left unsaid.

On the upside, everything surrounding her job is not wrought with danger; Maggie tells wonderful tales of antics that transpire at the firehouse. Being the only female, the guys love to terrorize her. Most nights spent at the station, she finds her bed short-sheeted when she’s dead on her feet and ready to call it a day.

Looking forward to her 48 hours off duty, Maggie said farewell to her coworkers and walked to her car early one morning—only to find it stuffed so full of balloons she couldn’t even climb inside! They do have fun when the time is right and God knows they deserve it.

However, my favorite story has to do with Maggie driving one those of gargantuan red, fire engines! In fact, it was the first time she was put behind the wheel. She was cautious as she drove down Central Expressway, which happens to be one of the busiest and most treacherous freeways in Dallas. Her Captain was in the passenger seat giving instructions when the call came in. There was an accident several miles down Central and they were instructed to respond.

Maggie’s voice was uneasy, "I’ve got to pull over somewhere so you can drive."

"No way! We don’t have time for that—you’ll do fine," barked the Captain. "Speed it up!"

"But what about all this traffic? It’s everywhere, everywhere!" Maggie all but choked on her words; her heart pounded in her ears.

"Remember when Moses parted the Red Sea, remember how it looked? That’s exactly what will happen as soon as you give this darned truck some gas!" With that, he turned on the siren and flashing lights. "Step on it now!"

Maggie stomped on the gas…

"Oh, my gosh! I don’t believe it," she squealed as she gave the truck even more gas. She flew down the center of the freeway at break neck speed while autos quickly pulled to the left and right. The road belonged to Maggie, a dedicated, courageous fire fighter who puts herself in danger each day she’s on the job…

~~~ Dedicated to Maggie, and fire fighters en masse ~~~