Jumpline MAG_Spring 2026 - Flipbook - Page 47
Caught in the Current
Author “A”
truck, and just let it sit for a bit. I even caught
myself talking to it...like it could understand
me. I put some music on too. Something
calm. And then I just gave it time.
As firefighters, we’re
trained and wired
to be the ones
who jump in
– to fix, to save,
to step into action
when everything is
falling apart.
It’s just what we do.
About an hour later, after some warmth, some
quiet...and honestly, just some company, the
bird started to come back. I took it outside to
see what it would do. It took a few steps. Then
a few more. And then it 昀氀ew. Not far. Not perfect. But enough. And that’s the part that stuck with me.
It didn’t need everything 昀椀xed. Just a little
bit of help – and a chance. And just enough
strength to try again.
Before all of that, I was self-absorbed, hyper focused on myself, and couldn’t get out of my own way. I was drowning in my
thoughts with no lifeguard on duty. Those thoughts had consumed me and were going all over the place. But something
shifted when I focused on helping that bird. And it made me re-
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alize something. Sometimes helping someone
else, (in this case God’s creation), is exactly
what you need.
That’s what this Phoenix Group
represents. That’s what these
meetings are. We’re not here because we’re weak. We’re here
because each of us has been in
the current - and we’re choosing not to stay
there.
We’re learning how to sit beside each other. To talk. To listen.
To be real. To remind each other that even when it feels like
we’re going under...we’re not alone.
That presence matters. And sometimes,
that’s just enough to keep you a昀氀oat until
you’re ready to 昀氀y again.
Spring 2026 | JUMPLINE Magazine
