I want...

Right now, I want more than anything in the world to be able to provide a good life for my family.. I've got a decent job, but with this job, I don't get to see my wife too often.. I work graves, she works swings and I find myself sitting here at work everyday reading stories from my favorite blog. "Firefighter/Paramedic Stories" http://firefighterparamedicstories.blogspot.com/ Stories of an experienced firefighter paramedic working in the California bay area near where I went through paramedic school. I'd LOVE to meet the author of this blog and hear some stories face to face, This guy is living my dream, Every bit of it...

 Currently I love what I'm doing.. Moving to Utah gave me the opportunity to practice my skills with what I consider to be the best volunteer department in the state.. I love being a part of a great volunteer fire-department and having weekly contact with the local group of professional firefighters at both fire and emergency medical scenes. NLFD has provided me with opportunities to get hands on experience as well as to take additional classes like ADO (Apparatus Driver and Operator) Pumper and ADO Aerial allowing me to be certified in the pump and engineer operations of our Engine and Truck.. With all that though, I'm still in a bit of a stand-still and it's getting... OLD! I have completed all of the requirements needed for National certification as paramedic, The only thing standing in my way right now: The money and vacation time I need both to be able to take the NREMT Test.. I came home to Utah to finish my field internship with Utah's busiest paramedic rescue company after going through a year of classwork and Emergency Room clinicals in the bay area. The things I saw and experienced only added fuel to the fire and got me even more excited about the career I have chosen. I found out just a couple of days ago that I'll need to travel back to California and test where I took the course, This requires money and vacation time.. See where I'm going with that? There is not a doubt in my mind that I'm going to do what it takes to achieve my dreams of working with a busy fire-department as a firefighter paramedic, Busy being the key word (Eventually).. Nobody other than myself could stop me from making it happen...  

What I want more than anything and only second to my families happiness is to be a successful firefighter paramedic working for not just any, but a busy fire department, I want to clip in at the raised tip of a 75-105' aerial ladder and watch as water flows over a giant defensive fire operation, I want to be able to place someone who is in a dangerous position into a position of comfort and safety when they need it most, I want to be a part of helping out my community in a time when they need help the most, I want to reach the point where all I have to do: is do what good medics do without over thinking many of my EMS calls. What I want .... What I NEED.. is to be able to take and pass the National Registry of EMT-Paramedics exam, Get a job, (Anywhere) and start working with patients on a transporting EMS agency.

 While I look to the future to fulfill these things, Its the present that is keeping me grounded... My family is the most important thing to me in the world, I'll do anything to be able to provide for them and watch them smile. My favorite parts of the day include coming home from work in the early morning hours and snuggling up to my sleeping wife and when my daughter comes in to wake me up with a gentle kiss on the cheek saying "Daddy's Awake!"  The fact of that matter is: I'm completely imperfect, and I make mistakes all the time, I probably make more than my fair share of mistakes this day in age but I learn from them and I believe that is what makes me better, it makes me want to push myself that much harder to become better and the motivating factor of it all to me is my family... That is why I am doubtless that I'll succeed when I'm given the chance at working as a professional firefighter paramedic, and I can't wait for that opportunity to come around!