Tonight’s Reflection: Chris Parce shared a great article on my wall a couple of hours ago. (Don’t go to his page, though. The profile pic will scare the hell out of you.) The article talks about a career paramedic in a small town that just couldn’t take it anymore. His depression and PTSD eventually got the best of him and his Chief found him sitting in a chair with four 16 gauge IV catheters in his right arm; he had put them in place to allow the blood to drain from his body into buckets placed on the floor. The story talks about how the entire town rallies behind this medic to try and save his life. It talks about how the emergency department at the hospital is flooded with Fire/EMS personnel. It paints the picture as to how the medic’s wife is impacted by this tragedy, even though she sees this type of thing daily as she runs the ICU at the hospital where the medic was transported. He was transported in the ambulance that he was assigned to staff, by the guy working overtime because his relief was laying on the stretcher next to him. Why don’t we have towns that rally behind people anymore? Why don’t we have people that care to make up those towns? If anyone took US History with Coach Lucas at Greenville High School, they have probably heard the phrase, “it made the world smaller.” It is a phrase he would use often when talking about advancements in technology, whether it be the Pony Express or the invention of the telegraph. Facebook has made the world smaller, and it has allowed people that you have once met, possibly even made an impression upon, to easily keep up with you and rally behind your causes. And I believe that’s great; it truly is! The part that I have to question is: Why did anyone ever have to meet me to know that I’m worth believing in, instead of assuming it from the very beginning? I appreciate each and every one of my brothers and sisters that are first responders. I am aware of the training that we have all been through and I know that it was not an easy task for any of us to get to where we are. That said, I firmly believe that there isn’t a single person alive that I couldn’t stand to learn a lesson from. I often find that I am different from others because I try to truly respect my elders and that I see the value in high school and college students that have been raised from a different foundation than I was. You don’t have to wear a badge or show up with lights and sirens for me to respect you, you simply have to have a pulse and a desire for the good of yourself and those around you. For what it’s worth, so many of you have rallied behind me in my time of need and I greatly appreciate it. While I wish you all good health and a happy life, I hope that I am the person responding to your 911 call if you are ever in need so that I can repay the favor. Tonight’s Update: Honestly, things have been a lot better today. I have had quite a few bad thoughts, but nothing has lingered with me for too long. That says a LOT right now since I am currently out of town and in a location that actually should be triggering depressive episodes for me. Getting a couple of nights of really good sleep a had a major impact on my feeling better. As such, I’m going to keep this part short and sweet tonight so that I can take my medication and go to sleep. Ahh… dinner at 5:30, medication before falling asleep; it appears I’m getting old. Programming Note: For those of you that are curious, Beth and I are perfectly fine. I have not been mentioning her in these posts because she does not suffer from any of the issues I do and her story is not mine to tell. If you want to know about her, please contact her directly. It is my intention to continue keeping this about myself and not providing cross-talk about anyone else.