Mourning

I’ve been absent from blogging this week, for good reason though. The fear of a wife came true as one of Colby’s fellow firefighters lost his life on Wednesday.

Any death is tragic, but this one is particularly sad. Our friend Luther got married basically a month after Colby and myself. The two had a beautiful house built and were beginning their lives just like Colby and I until this tragic news came upon us.

Words cannot describe this loss of such a great man and the pain that his wife and family are going through. I simply cannot imagine being in her position.

Luther was a terrific man. He was looked up to by many, even at the young age of 34. His intelligence was amazing because it seemed Luther knew so much about everything….and he did. He was an amazing firefighter, and each and every person at the fire department liked Luther. If you had ever met him, you would like him. A true country boy. Kind. Gentle. Caring. Yet, he was strong and came through during tough times.

We all loved Luther, and we certainly love Brittany, his wife. Whether you know her or not, please pray for her to have the strength to take life day by day. Pray that she does not lose faith in God and recognizes that Luther is in a place we all hope to be one day. She needs more prayers sent up for her now than she will in her entire life.

As a firefighter’s wife, I can tell you that we love each and every one of those men that work at that station. We’re a family, and the firefighters are brothers. They unite when the going gets tough. I can tell you now that the experience that I had tried to prepare myself for today could not be prepared for.

This career impacts our husbands’ lives, but it also impacts our lives and our children’s lives. We love these men so deeply, and we pray each time they go to work that they will be kept safe while in the line of duty.

While my life has not been turned upside down as Brittany’s seems to have been, I ache for her inside. She was presented today with a flag and Luther’s helmet by his very best friend and my best friend.

The last page went off, which can tear any human person to pieces. It is the hardest thing you will ever hear as a wife of a firefighter. The bag pipes. The last page. The fly-over by Life Flight. It’s a memory that is stamped in your mind forever, and you pray you never have to go through it.

Again, I ask you to pray for Brittany. I ask that you pray for his family, and I ask that you pray for his brothers of the fire department. They are going to need it. Even today after all they have been through, they are back in the line of duty and going on calls.

Say thank you to someone you know who is a firefighter. Say thank you to their family for sacrificing all that they do. Just say thank you.