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Health & Fitness

Blog: Dadmissions: I Wanna be a Firefighter When I Grow Up

Dadmissions and daughter get a field trip to the fire department

All of a sudden I was four years old again going on the field trip with kids from Calvary Preschool as we toured the South Pasadena firehouse.

Firefighters Furtado, Dunn, Porraz and others led the tour showing us all the firefighting tools, the ambulance, and the fire trucks. The gurney pulled out from the ambulance and one kid said, "Whoah cool!"

And it was.

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They used the heart monitor to check out one boy's heartbeat and then let him keep the sticky suction cups for good measure. We saw the fifty pounds of gear they wear, the breathing mask, the Darth Vader type voice that comes out when they are all hooked up. And we saw the jaws of life that can pry things apart in an emergency. All along the way, the kids had inquisitive four-year-old questions like, "Do you still save cats?"...and "Where's the firehouse dog?"...and "Can we see the fire pole?" The firefighters must've answered the fire pole question thirty times...

We saw the upstairs at the firehouse where they cook and sleep and live on their shifts away from family. The firefighters made it a point to say they need to make their beds ever day or they get in trouble and I appreciated that. They made it a point to say they only get to watch a little TV a day, that they need to exercise and stay in shape, and I appreciated that as well.

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The kids loved that there was a "snoring room" for the guys who really snore loud at night (and I was grateful my wife hasn't thought of the same idea for me). The kids asked again, "Can we see the fire pole?" And then one by one they showed us where all the firefighters get the call, day or night, and make the quick flight down the fire pole to go try and save lives. Pretty cool. The kids all got a firefighting badge and got to take pictures in front of the fire trucks.

On the walk back to Calvary we had some incredible conversations that you'd expect from four year olds, like what to do if we ever step on poop. I got to have Goldfish and apple juice with the kids, I got a little messy in the sand yard, and I got to share the day with my four year old, Andreya. It was great to be four again even for just a day. Thanks to the great South Pasadena firefighters and thanks to Mrs. Turner and Mrs. Wilson of Calvary for giving me the opportunity to turn back the clock even just briefly.

One thing is for certain, I want to be a firefighter when I grow up.

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