“I will. Wait right there.”
He watched her for as long as he could, then hunkered down in the chair. Kaitlin had to make it. She had to come back to him in one piece.
Sighing, he closed his eyes and prayed for exactly that.
I come from a family filled with firefighters, EMTs, paramedics and nurses. My stint as an EMT was a short one but it taught me a lot about the rigors of that life. As Kaitlin and Daniel observed in this story, it takes a special kind of person to put themselves out for others, over and over again, with no expectation of reward or praise. They burn out. They struggle against unmerited guilt for failing to save every victim. They remember years later what a suffering child may have said to them in the midst of a terrible wreck and it haunts them.
So the next time you see or hear an emergency vehicle, please stop and pray for the ones aboard and the people they are racing to help. And if you harbor any doubts about your prayerful connections to the Lord, start by asking Him to accept you into His, into our, family.
I love to hear from readers! Visit me at my website, valeriehansen.com, or email me directly at [email protected].
May you be blessed and thankful for it every day.
Valerie Hansen
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
—Psalm 51:10
To my children and grandchildren who put in long hours helping others, both in emergencies and in hospitals. I’m so proud of you all! And to my Joe, who led the way and is still with me in spirit.
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Note to Readers
Fog filled the valley in the Ozarks. Icy morning air chilled off-duty police officer Daniel Ryan to the bone. He’d been sent to the remote, deserted homestead for his own safety, or so his chief had claimed, but he knew there would be no true escape for him. Ever. Too much had happened.
He tensed. Real threats could lurk out there in the fog. Assassins.
