6 word memoir extension: "Building Collapse, Heavy Snow, Car Crushed"

          Ever since his promotion a few years ago I feel like Jimmy is on television every few weeks because some disaster or another is happening in Lynn.  He is currently the Deputy Chief of the Lynn Fire Department, which means he is second in command to the Chief.  One of the many roles required in the job is reporting to all major emergencies in town, and then relaying what happens at those emergencies to the media.  On top of that, he is a pretty good Father-in-law as well.

          On the morning of January 27^th Jimmy was woken up around 5 in the morning with terrible news.  A roof collapsed at the GLSS building because of the absurd amounts of snowfall that had accumulated over the past month.  Unfortunately two men were trapped in a car below and could get out.  Being the stoic man that he is he rushed to the scene to take control of the situation.  He knew that people were in danger and he had to do whatever it took to get them out so that they could see their families again. 

          It took dozens of firemen over two hours to dig the men out because their vehicle was completely covered with snow.  Communication with the men was fortunately constant because of cell phones and they always knew what was happening around them.  Firemen had to use the Jaws of Life to rescue the men because steel beams destroyed the rest of the car and the doors could not be opened manually.  Under the direction of Jimmy Mac, these men would be out as quickly and safely as humanly possible.

          Once the men were freed the area around the building turned into a media circus and there to answer any and all questions was Chief McDonald.  Because this happened at the height of the ridiculous winter weather it even drew the attention of the Dianne Sawyer and the ABC World News, who sent out a correspondent to interview Jimmy.  He had answers for all their questions and informed everybody on exactly what happened.  It’s almost like it was just another typical day in his career, but to outsiders it seems like so much more.

          Later that evening after all the hustle and bustle died down my wife and I had dinner over at their house.  As we walked in he was stationed in his standard position, feet up on the coffee table, reading glasses on, Boston Herald Crossword puzzle in hand.  His typical greeting of, “Yo” as we entered was no surprise at all.  We obviously wanted to hear all about the adventures of his morning but he had other ideas.  “Let’s eat, I’m starvin’” was all he could muster out.  There would be no talk about what happened that morning.

          That right there is the difference between us and Chief Jimmy Mac.  What we saw as heroic and awe-inspiring was something that is just regular happenstance for him.  No need to rehash what went on; he lived it and didn’t need to convey anything else.  All we needed to get we could get from the news on TV or the paper the following day.   He would have nothing of the topic the rest of the night.

          Jimmy McDonald.  Humble man, brave fireman, my father-in-law.  Who knows where he will end up next on the streets of Lynn?  All I know is that he will do his very best to make sure every situation is handled and carefully and successfully as possible.