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A Very Reluctant Hero
by M.E.(Bunny) Eastveld
It was about 4 AM, when Bob came to the door and woke us up, telling us that our shed was on fire, and that we'd better get the horses out of the barn. His dog, Julie (our border collie, Snoopy's, mom) had been barking quite urgently, which woke Bob up. When he looked to the east out his kitchen window, about 1/2 mile away, he said that he could see flames shooting up about 100 feet in the air. He tried to phone us, but the wires in the tackroom were melted, so we had a dead line. So, he phoned the Fire Chief of the Rosser Fire Department, (which is about 25 miles away from us), jumped into his clothes and truck and drove down here.
When he got here, he had to run past my car, which was being toasted from the heat of the burning building. The siding was melting off our mobile home, as well. He could have been killed going there, what if my car was hot enough to explode? My car was parked just beside our mobile, about 10 feet from the blazing building.
Bob helped us to get the horses out of the barn and down to the south pasture, and at the same time, as the pumper trucks arrived, he was calling them over to the hay shed and barn, which were being hit by large pieces of burning rubble. If the hay shed had caught fire, the barn would have been gone, too! (Something that I really don't like to think about). He stayed with us until about 8:30 that morning, then he had to go home and do his chores. (Bob raises cattle on his farm, next door to us).
This man is a friend, and I consider him to be a hero. If he hadn't listened to his dog, my car likely would have blown up and sent a fireball right through our home, no chance of escape from that one. The other thing is, that he helped us save our horses, and he's been here almost daily to see if we need help with anything, or need anything at all. Although the insurance company wants to write my car off, I'm stil driving it, so I do get away once in a while. But, knowing Bob, if I couldn't, he'd bring his car down, or let me use his truck for going for groceries or watever. This big, gentle man has a heart of gold, and we're doubly blessed that he and his son are friends of ours. They help where help is needed!
I think, actually, that Bob's son, Derek's, wife thought I was more than a little crazy the day of the fire. She brought some homemade lasagna over for me to heat up in the oven for lunch. Very nice of her, and I thanked her very much, but then, she said to me, "I can make supper and bring it to you too, if you like." I was a tad punchy at that point, and just laughed and said: "thanks anyway, but if we're hungry we'll just go out and see what's cooked in the freezer" (Prior to the fire our 23 cu ft freezer had a half cow and a whole pig in it, besides other assorted nummies). Well, She looked at me oddly, and walked back to her car.
Les, my life partner, answered the door later on in the day, while I was sleeping on the couch. I woke up to hear Lynnette repeat her offer of making supper and bringing it down to our place. Les kind of smiled (he has this devilish grin), and said: "Oh, that's okay, if we're hungry, we'll just go and see what's cooked in the freezer". Honest to pete, he wasn't anywhere near the house when I told poor Lynnette the same thing at noon. But maybe they're right when they say: "great minds think alike, but fools seldom differ". I rather like the 'great minds' appellation better, don't you?
Post-script: A fund raising social was held on March 24,2001 and at the social, we presented a plaque that I'd made and a red leather dog collar with Julie's name on it to Bob. He said in his speech that all of the credit should go to Julie. I know very well though, that if he hadn't come and wakened us, we'd all be dead or in hospital, and our barn, business and all that we owned would have been gone, along with 32 horses! Bob, Thank You!!
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