December 2012 marked the beginning of a new chapter for me. I remember that day like it was yesterday. I had arranged to carpool to this tiny town (population about 400) about an hour away for EMT class. My family's van was on its last leg and my husband and I had been shopping for a "new" one. I put the word new in quotes because we don't actually buy new vehicles. Again, you're still getting to know me and you don't yet know that my husband and I are what you might call frugal. Anyway, as we were in the car dealership signing the paperwork for our new to us van, it began to snow....hard. For a moment I thought maybe we wouldn't have our first night of class and then I thought "no, if I'm going to survive as an EMT I'm going to have to be tough. I can't let a little snow get in my way." I've never been one to care about a little rain or snow anyway. In fact I often think that people who do must not have grown up around here (even though I know they did.) I'll admit right now and you'll find out as you read, I am NOT a patient person. If I need or want something on the day of a blizzard or a thunderstorm, I go get it anyway. And honestly, part of me really enjoys going out when other people are hunkered down in their houses with a cup of coffee and a radio waiting out the storm. But it makes sense- that's why I enjoy the line of work I got myself into. That is pretty much what we do.
I remember going home and eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, finding my snow boots and taking off toward the fire station to meet my carpool mates who were both volunteer firefighters. I knew one of them and had never met the other so of course I was a little nervous. Don't get me wrong-I'm an extrovert- I love meeting new people. I was nervous because one just never knows-especially as a woman- how you'll be received in this line of work. All of these thoughts go through your head and before you've even met the people sometimes you've made up your mind of what they think of you. I know-its not fair to people when I do that. I really need to work on that.
After driving through blizzard conditions to get to our destination, we found a small room with folding tables and chairs with a teacher and ten students. Ten-remember that number, it'll come up later. The instructor introduced himself as a firefighter paramedic. Teaching is what he did in his off time. As he told the class about how he became a paramedic after being an EMT for a few years I got way more excited than someone who had just driven through a blizzard for a night class should have. I knew then and there that I wanted to be a paramedic. I even raised my hand and asked about it. Then reality hit me. The town I lived in didn't even employ paramedics. Our ambulance service only had and only wanted EMTs. So, I forgot about becoming a paramedic and listened to the lecture. The first lecture of many, many more to come.
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