This simple piece of elastic means so much more than meets the eye . It is in fact a glimpse into a deep seated tradition. A tradition carried, out time and time again in the fire service. Why do I show you this picture? Because this past week, we had to bring this tradition to the forefront as we laid to rest one of our own. You see, my husband's Chief with the Winnsboro FD passed away last Sunday morning.
Chief Hutto had been sick for months but I don't think anyone really thought he would leave so soon. I guess you always think there is more time. Time to do what needs doing, say what needs saying but sometimes it just doesn't go the way you plan. He left behind 6 grown daughters, a wife, a huge family and so many friends that the church was nearly standing room only at his service. Willard was so well known, people came from all over the state to pay their respects and it was a real testament to his life.
Admittedly, I did not know Chief Hutto all that well. We did not socialize and hang out with him or his family but there was still a bond there. A bond that all firemen and their families share. It's hard to explain that bond to those who have never lived this life.
Police officers understand it. Soldiers understand it. Have you ever noticed people looking at others in the mall, the grocery store, and they just nod at each other as they walk by? You know they don't know each other but it almost seems like they do? It seems odd to the outside world but they do in fact know each other. One may wear a Vietnam Vet hat and the other a Operation Iraqi Freedom one. One wears a fire department t shirt while the other sports a SWAT shirt. You see it in their eyes if you look hard enough.
Each one knows the other as well as they know themselves. They know the struggles, the pain, the heartbreak the other has seen and lived through. They know what is yet to come. That old vet sees his buddies that are now names on a wall in that young soldier's face, knowing he has no clue just what he signed up for. The cop sees the rookie she once was before the abused women and kids, the drivers who had too much to drink and the insults hurdled at her for wearing a badge became what keeps her up a night, making it hard to sleep soundly. The fireman sees the probie, so full of enthusiasm not realizing it fades so fast as the calls start to run together and you discover you can't save everyone, no matter how badly you want to.
There may be different colored lines but the black in that piece of elastic in my fingers represents that bond. That little piece of elastic is placed around a badge as a symbol of mourning but also one of endurance and hope. Every time one of these black bands is lovingly put into use, it is a sign to the rest of those who serve that we lost one of our own. It is a sign that we will protect their memory and honor them by carrying on. Death will never stop those who serve from rising up and continuing on. It just doesn't have that kind of power. That little black band is very nearly the strongest bond on Earth, second only perhaps to a parents love for their child or God's love for us.
As a fireman's wife, funerals of lost brothers are harder than most. My mind goes places it shouldn't when I stand silently by my husband's side as Last Call is sounded, the bell rings out and Taps plays, fighting to hold it together, to be strong for him. While I pray daily he is a crabby old man when that day comes, I know someday that same sea of uniforms, loved ones and badges wrapped in black bands will be for my love. I also know that the bond that holds us now as a fire family will be there to catch us and hold us tight if God forbid the worst happens.
As you go about your week, say a prayer for the Hutto family. Losing a loved one is never easy. Pray for the Winnsboro FD as they pick up their gear, get in the trucks and go about being silent heroes to an unseeing world. All the while, trying to heal their broken hearts. Rest easy Chief Hutto, your men have it from here.
#proudfirefamily
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