* Air goes in and out, blood goes round and round, any variation on this is bad.

* Try not to discuss "your day" at the family dinner table.

* You may not install a "car catcher" on the front of the ambulance.

* The more equipment you see on a EMT's belt, the newer they are.

* Examine all chest clutchers first, bleeders next, then the rest of the whiners.

* When dealing with citizens, if it felt good saying it, it was wrong.

* All bleeding stops...…

I wish you could know what it is like to search a burning bedroom

for trapped children at 3 AM, flames rolling above your head, your

palms and knees burning as you crawl, the floor sagging under your

weight as the kitchen below you burns.



I wish you knew the unique smell of burning insulation, the taste of

soot-filled mucus, the feeling of intense heat through your turnout

gear, the sound of flames crackling, the eeriness of being able to…