You knew what I was when you picked me up...

There's an old Indian legend that goes like this.

Many years ago, Indian youths would go away in solitude to prepare for manhood. One such youth set off to climb the peak of a mountain. When he reached the top, he could see forever, and his heart swelled with joy. Then he heard a rustle at his feet. Looking down, he saw a snake. Before he could move, the snake spoke: “I am about to die. It is too cold for me up here, and I am freezing. There is no food, and I am starving. Put me under your shirt and take me down to the valley.”

“Oh, no,” said the youth. “I know your kind. You are a rattlesnake. If I pick you up, you will bite me, and I will die.”

“Not so,” said the snake. “I will treat you differently. If you do this for me, you will be special. I will not harm you.”

The youth withstood for a while, but this was a very persuasive snake with beautiful markings. At last the youth tucked it under his shirt and carried it down to the valley. There he laid it gently on the grass. Suddenly, the snake coiled, rattled, and struck, biting him on the leg.

“But you promised—” cried the youth.

“You knew what I was when you picked me up,” said the snake as it slithered away. (From Iron Eyes Cody, “But You Promised,” Reader’s Digest, June 1989, p. 131.)

When I met D, he told me straight away that 1. He was going to be a firefighter and 2. He was going to live in California.  While neither of those were very appealing to me, I fell in love with D and promised to support him and stay by his side.  Even if that meant supporting him becoming a firefighter and staying by his side in California.  And so I jumped on board (after some learning about California and firefighting...)!

We moved to the Sac area in August 2009.  Since living here, D has been volunteering with Penryn Fire Protection District as he tests and interviews for fire jobs all over.  Even though it's been 3 years, he has not been out on 1 strike team (a team that goes out to fight wild fires).  

Well, this morning at 6 am he left for his first strike team!  

There are roughly a bazillion fires all around California right now (granted, that's just an estimation).  He's at the Rush Fire (which is on the border of CA and NV).  I have no idea how long he will be gone.  It could be a couple of days, it could be a lot of days (you get sent out for a 9 days max. shift, but if your station sends out another "relief" team to replace your team, you can volunteer to stay on for the next 9 day shift).

I'm an anxious person by design.  And wild fires are unpredictable and scary.  But, he is out there with a ton of firefighters who all have each other's backs.  And he's been trained for this.  As have the other firefighters out there.  And, what an awesome opportunity for him to work with so many different firefighters from so many different departments.  I am trying really hard to not be the super anxiety queen of America.  I am trying really hard to remember that my husband knows what he's doing.  

And, I knew what he was when I picked him up.