March 17th, 2015. That was the last time I had been up. Life and other things got in the way, mainly foot issues. Then, finally, in spite of foot issues, I was up again on March 16th, 2020.
It had been almost 5 years to the date, had been 5 years if you consider 2020 was a leap year. Of course I did not go up on my own. As great and awesome as I am, even I have to follow the rules sometimes. I had to go up with a flight instructor to begin 1 of what was to be a handful of flights to get current again.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, I'm a private pilot. You never lose your pilot license once you have it, unless you get caught doing something really stupid like drinking and flying or running drugs for the cartel. But you do have be current before you can go up on your own or with passengers. Let’s just say not flying for 5 years means you are not current. So there I was in the plane flying. Then this virus stuff shut me down before flight 2.
My self imposed house arrest gives me time to work on my IFR studies. VFR is visual, which my currency is all about. IFR, the next level which I am working toward, is instrument…it means you can fly thru the clouds. So here I am waiting to go flying again so a flight instructor can sign me off to get in the sky on my own. Here I am exercising great restraint for I am a free spirit, anti-authority “big daddy government doesn’t tell me” kind of guy. Here I am hitting the books, and it was while hitting the books I came across a few acronyms (which the FAA loves) and a few mnemonics (which the FAA loves). Both are memory techniques or words that mean other things so you can recall information through the use of such.
…and that leads me to the purpose of this writing.
I decided to use the words burn survivor, fire and smoke. I hope you like. I hope you come up with some of your own to share or share ones you have come across. While I am sure much is my own spark, some of my writings below were sparked by others I have heard or read, and like all great survivalists, I have stolen that spark and used it to make a fire that warms me.
It had been almost 5 years to the date, had been 5 years if you consider 2020 was a leap year. Of course I did not go up on my own. As great and awesome as I am, even I have to follow the rules sometimes. I had to go up with a flight instructor to begin 1 of what was to be a handful of flights to get current again.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, I'm a private pilot. You never lose your pilot license once you have it, unless you get caught doing something really stupid like drinking and flying or running drugs for the cartel. But you do have be current before you can go up on your own or with passengers. Let’s just say not flying for 5 years means you are not current. So there I was in the plane flying. Then this virus stuff shut me down before flight 2.
My self imposed house arrest gives me time to work on my IFR studies. VFR is visual, which my currency is all about. IFR, the next level which I am working toward, is instrument…it means you can fly thru the clouds. So here I am waiting to go flying again so a flight instructor can sign me off to get in the sky on my own. Here I am exercising great restraint for I am a free spirit, anti-authority “big daddy government doesn’t tell me” kind of guy. Here I am hitting the books, and it was while hitting the books I came across a few acronyms (which the FAA loves) and a few mnemonics (which the FAA loves). Both are memory techniques or words that mean other things so you can recall information through the use of such.
…and that leads me to the purpose of this writing.
I decided to use the words burn survivor, fire and smoke. I hope you like. I hope you come up with some of your own to share or share ones you have come across. While I am sure much is my own spark, some of my writings below were sparked by others I have heard or read, and like all great survivalists, I have stolen that spark and used it to make a fire that warms me.
Be a BURN SURVIVOR.
Understand the road ahead.
Realize you’re not alone.
Never give up.
Stay positive.
Use resources.
Research how others deal.
Value your own life experience.
Implement a plan.
Verify what you’re doing is good for you.
Offer help when you can help.
Remember to live.
Understand the road ahead.
Realize you’re not alone.
Never give up.
Stay positive.
Use resources.
Research how others deal.
Value your own life experience.
Implement a plan.
Verify what you’re doing is good for you.
Offer help when you can help.
Remember to live.
Be a BURN SURVIVOR.
Understand the road ahead.
Keep it real. It is not going to be easy. Depending on your burns, there will be limitations. I can not point my feet and do ballet with my girls. Not that I’m saying I would if I could, but it irritates me that I can’t make that choice. It is not going to be as hard as you can imagine. There will be ups and downs. There are ups and downs in any life, burned or not.
Realize you’re not alone.
While no one has walked in your shoes and will never know exactly what you are going through, realize that there are many who are traveling a similar path. There are groups of burn survivors from all walks of life, all stages of recovery, with a variety of opinions on how to deal.
Never give up.
A firefighter buddy once shared a saying which applies to any one any time they feel their life is not worth living. “Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.” My take on rock bottom is a bit more raw. “If you ain’t gonna take yourself out, you might as well play the hand you’re dealt and surprise the fu…surprise the heck out of others.” Your life does have meaning, no matter the condition. Trust me when I say this, “you are an inspiration”. You might not know so because it may be someone in your circle who never told you or it might be some stranger you never knew who saw you at the right moment when they needed some type of encouragement and you were the motivating force. Isn’t that a beautiful thing.
Stay positive.
Sorry, you can’t just be burned. You got to be burned in addition to all the other things life brings your way. Embrace the bad moments you will experience, the bad moments everyone experiences. Learn from them. Know that those moments help define the good by contrast.
Use resources.
There are many resources for you to tap into. This is where the internet is a beautiful thing. There are many organizations, camps, retreats, and other gatherings where burn survivors (online or face to face) share their thoughts and ideas.
Research how others deal.
Seek out wisdom. We are not alike. We come from different backgrounds with different ideas on how to deal with things. Steal a little of this and a little of that and build your own way of dealing.
Value your own life experience.
No one knows you as good as you. It can be your way or the highway as long as you recognize others have their own highway and as long as you are open to redirection and expansion, or destruction and rebuild, if needed.
Implement a plan.
At some point we must all act. We must all live. We must move forward. Be willing to adapt and improve on your life plan as time brings new things to light.
Verify what you’re doing is good for you.
Take time to evaluate where you are and where you want to be. If all is well, stay on course. If need be, explore possible changes in direction, pick one and see where that gets you. It is called growth.
Offer help when you can help.
You have something to offer. Helping others is covert therapy. Every little bit can help as long as you know you are ready. There are ways of getting your toes wet if you don’t know if you are prepared. If you break down during a lecture about burns in front of a class of nurses, OT or PT students, it will add to the program. If you break down during a burn camp, it will not be helpful to the young burn survivors you are there to help. You can have your own baggage, but you need to know when to leave yours at home so it can be unpacked another time.
Remember to live.
Live your life. It wasn’t perfect before you were burned and it will not be perfect going forward. Own it and own the road ahead with all its perfect imperfections. Those roads are the best roads.
Understand the road ahead.
Keep it real. It is not going to be easy. Depending on your burns, there will be limitations. I can not point my feet and do ballet with my girls. Not that I’m saying I would if I could, but it irritates me that I can’t make that choice. It is not going to be as hard as you can imagine. There will be ups and downs. There are ups and downs in any life, burned or not.
Realize you’re not alone.
While no one has walked in your shoes and will never know exactly what you are going through, realize that there are many who are traveling a similar path. There are groups of burn survivors from all walks of life, all stages of recovery, with a variety of opinions on how to deal.
Never give up.
A firefighter buddy once shared a saying which applies to any one any time they feel their life is not worth living. “Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.” My take on rock bottom is a bit more raw. “If you ain’t gonna take yourself out, you might as well play the hand you’re dealt and surprise the fu…surprise the heck out of others.” Your life does have meaning, no matter the condition. Trust me when I say this, “you are an inspiration”. You might not know so because it may be someone in your circle who never told you or it might be some stranger you never knew who saw you at the right moment when they needed some type of encouragement and you were the motivating force. Isn’t that a beautiful thing.
Stay positive.
Sorry, you can’t just be burned. You got to be burned in addition to all the other things life brings your way. Embrace the bad moments you will experience, the bad moments everyone experiences. Learn from them. Know that those moments help define the good by contrast.
Use resources.
There are many resources for you to tap into. This is where the internet is a beautiful thing. There are many organizations, camps, retreats, and other gatherings where burn survivors (online or face to face) share their thoughts and ideas.
Research how others deal.
Seek out wisdom. We are not alike. We come from different backgrounds with different ideas on how to deal with things. Steal a little of this and a little of that and build your own way of dealing.
Value your own life experience.
No one knows you as good as you. It can be your way or the highway as long as you recognize others have their own highway and as long as you are open to redirection and expansion, or destruction and rebuild, if needed.
Implement a plan.
At some point we must all act. We must all live. We must move forward. Be willing to adapt and improve on your life plan as time brings new things to light.
Verify what you’re doing is good for you.
Take time to evaluate where you are and where you want to be. If all is well, stay on course. If need be, explore possible changes in direction, pick one and see where that gets you. It is called growth.
Offer help when you can help.
You have something to offer. Helping others is covert therapy. Every little bit can help as long as you know you are ready. There are ways of getting your toes wet if you don’t know if you are prepared. If you break down during a lecture about burns in front of a class of nurses, OT or PT students, it will add to the program. If you break down during a burn camp, it will not be helpful to the young burn survivors you are there to help. You can have your own baggage, but you need to know when to leave yours at home so it can be unpacked another time.
Remember to live.
Live your life. It wasn’t perfect before you were burned and it will not be perfect going forward. Own it and own the road ahead with all its perfect imperfections. Those roads are the best roads.
Be like FIRE and SMOKE.
Forge ahead like FIRE.
Impose your will.
Rise to any challenge in your life.
Every experience, good or bad, has value.
and
SMOKE out the best way.
Make a difference.
Observe others.
Kill negativity.
Evaluate how to improve.
...thsnk you for your time...comments welcome...
Forge ahead like FIRE.
Impose your will.
Rise to any challenge in your life.
Every experience, good or bad, has value.
and
SMOKE out the best way.
Make a difference.
Observe others.
Kill negativity.
Evaluate how to improve.
...thsnk you for your time...comments welcome...
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Send it to us.
Want to help us do what we do? Find us on Facebook & donate there or go to our website's contact page and donate thru PayPal (mark friends and family so all of it goes to the cause). 100% of donations will go toward programs that assist burn survivors, their family and caregivers through prevention, education and motivation.
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