"Look aunty! A real fire engine truck!!!"
This weekend, my team organized a trip to the fire station for a bunch of 6-year olds! It is one of the activities in our year-long collaboration with the volunteer organization that Operations have adopted. **
We were supposed to be the children’s minders, but it didn’t take very long before the firefighters brought out the 6-year olds in all of us. The incessant “oh”, “wow”, while savoring the touch of a real fire engine truck is almost a dream come true for many of us who grew up with the Lego-modeled ones.
Seizing the opportunity, I chatted with the firefighters who are normally too busy to pay me any attention. It goes like this:
What keeps you going in a job like this?
Purpose, passion, pride.
How do you make it from bed to truck in under one minute at the sound of the alarm?
Practice, practice, practice. Repeat.
How do you remain in top form like to be able to climb 12-storeys non-stop in 3 minutes with 20kg on your back?
We train, we train, and we train. We never stop training.
Do you ever feel like quitting?
Yes, there were moments… then we remind ourselves why we signed up for this in the first place.
How do you know you are getting better at what you do?
We know with certainty as there is no lack of resources to help us get better - new equipment, new technology, new practices – how can we not get better unless we refuse to?
And lastly: are you afraid?
Of course we are. Who can be not afraid, staring danger in its face, engulfed by it? But we have a mission to accomplish, and we know our team is protecting one another and our buddies are watching out for us. We know as a team, we got this.
Amidst a backdrop of blaring sirens, I left the station with a newfound respect for our firefighters and emergency rescuers. Such a noble calling. Didn’t they say not all heroes wear capes?
** (The children come from lower income families, and one of the programme’s objectives is to ensure that these children, in their developmental years, no matter what their circumstances are, have access to opportunities for social-emotional learning and educational support so that they can succeed in life.)
Well done To All