You're cringing now, aren't you?
When I told Lithus I had officially turned down the unconstiutional and fascist job, he said "I'm in L.A. on standby. Why don't you come down here for a little while? We haven't flown in a month so it should be quiet."
You're laughing now, aren't you? Because you know the end of this story already, huh? Yeah...
The first few days were indeed slow. There was lots of sitting around. Lots of racing remote control cars. Lots of staring off into space. I was an incredibly productive author out of sheer boredom. And have a lovely tan thanks to the California sun. But then... Yep, the Santa Ana winds kicked up and the guys got busy. Really, really busy.
I watched these guys go from racing remote control cars to crawling inside the engine of a Sikorsky 61 (that's a really big fucking helicopter to you and me.) Watched them go from napping in the shade of that really big fucking helicopter and smoking a lazy cigarette to flying it into hurricane-force winds with sustained gusts of 105 miles per hour. I listened, afterwards, as these guys got drunk and toasted, not themselves, but each other.
I watched people on the news praise them as heroes. I watched people in the bar stare, transfixed, as they watched the really big fucking helicopter drop water on flames ~ without ever knowing the men who had been flying her when that footage was taken were sitting right there in the corner. And I watched these men turn away from the televisions, embarrassed to be caught in "the money shot" and grateful that, while their really big fucking helicopter might be recognizable, they wouldn't be.
They are humble, modest men who take pride in what they do ~ but don't want to be known for it. They can't tell you about every structure they saved ~ but remember every one they didn't. They know how hard they worked to put the fires out ~ but are just as glad you don't. They are heroic ~ but don't want to be called heroes. They know that what they do is important ~ but it's not what defines them. They have spent their lives being called enigmas ~ but they aren't. Not if your paradigm is big enough to accept ordinary men who do extradorinary things for no reason other than it's their job. Who have bad days, who can be assholes, who get sick, who are sometimes moody, who are a whole hell of a lot more than Hero Pilots 90% of the time. So, maybe they are paradoxes: heroes who don't want to be heroes. But enigmas? Nope. Just really interesting, well-rounded people.
Who look damn sexy in their flightsuits.
Those are Pobble Thoughts. That and a buck fifty will get you coffee.
12 comments:
Someone who saves lives because lives need saving, not for the glory of being called a hero....in my books, that's a real hero.
Give those guys a hug of thanks from me, and I hope/wish/pray they can all go back to being bored and playing with remote control cars very, very soon.
My H is a paramedic and he always gets annoyed at the hero thing. Everyone who has a job is a hero- we'd all be without something if everybody didn't chip in. Maybe a hero is the guy who slogs away picking up our trash, cleans our schools, makes our cars- economy and life wouldn't go on without 'em!
Wolfgrrrl ~ I'll pass along the hugs and thoughts, absolutely!
Akakarma ~ Ah yes, you and H understand.
My red haired darling's family is safe...One of the few times I'm glad they live in the northern part of LA or whatever...
But...much love to all the men who firefight, including Lithus and me daddy!
Loving Lithius at the moment.
As always, prayers abound.
as i said before, "well, bless their hearts."
glad the internet connection is back up and running
Superman was always too hard to relate to. Give me Batman any day. Smart, resourceful, skilled, as vulnerable as you or me and completely anonymous. Come to think of it, I've never seen Lithus and Batman at the same time... hmm.
I think the men and women who are fighting this blaze/fire via air and land are definitely heroes. This is so dangerous and they put their lives on the line for so many. Kudo's to these heroes.
I'm glad the end of this post worked out so well as it was obvious that things were going to go far beyond car racing.
That's a good description of the firefighters as well.
Finally, nice one getting your Internet back as I feel semi-lost without mine (not sure if this is good or bad).
All of us are so lucky that we have people around us like Lithus. Thanks to him and all of them for 'doing their jobs'.
Kimber's right...that's what hero's are made of.
Dreamer ~ Good to know he and his family are safe. Yay for DreamerDad, too!
Jaded ~ Yep, me too. And thanks.
Lovely Cats ~ Bless them, indeed. And the internet thing is still wonky. Have you seen me around recently? Exactly.
GOML! ~ Sshhhh...some secrets must not be told....
Rose ~ I'll pass along your kind words!
$$ ~ I rather preferred the ending to this one myself. And the internet being wonky is Killing Me. ;)
Tai ~ I agree and will let him know you think so.
I'm always telling people that the real heros of our country aren't the sports stars, it's the people who put their lives on the line for other people.
Those are the people I want MY children to emulate. Not some freakish ball player with multi-colored hair or some other ball player who screws around on his wife.
A reall hero doesn't look for recognition. They don't need it.
Glad Lithus is out there doing what he does for the right reasons.
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