AS A SINGLE MOM WORKING AT A DINER, I LOST SIGHT OF MY SON—WHAT HE SAID TO A FIREFIGHTER LEFT US ALL IN TEARS
One Halloween, I had to bring my four-year-old son, Micah, to work at the diner when the babysitter canceled. I was busy with the dinner rush when I noticed he was gone.
Panic set in as I searched for him, and then I saw him in the arms of a firefighter, who was crying silently. Micah looked up at him and said, “It’s okay. You saved them. My daddy says you’re a hero.”
The firefighter was visibly shaken, and I learned he had been close to my late husband, a firefighter who had died the previous year. He whispered, “He was my best friend.” Micah, unaware of the gravity, smiled and said, “Daddy says you did your best.” The firefighter was moved and gave Micah his father’s old badge, saying, “He’d be so proud of both of you.”
That night, as Micah held the badge, he asked, “Mommy, Daddy’s still watching, right?” I kissed his forehead, realizing that love endures, and sometimes, it takes a child’s faith to remind us we’re never truly alone.
