
Fireman at Work
A Poem
My brother Bill is a fireman bold
He pits oot fires*
Though he is only forty four and a half years old
He pits oot fires
He went out to a fire one night
Someone shouted DYNAMITE!!!!
But wherever he is he’ll be all right
Because
He pits oot fires
Translation and Explanatory Notes
*pits oot = puts out
An essential part of a fireman’s function is the extinguishing of conflagrations.
This is secondary only to his primary duty which, obviously, is to rescue precious wee kitty cats who get stuck up trees.
Diligent research has not yet revealed whether this is as frequent an occurrence as children’s books and TV shows suggest.
DYNAMITE!!! The use of capital letters and exclamation marks indicates the level of concern displayed at the discovery of explosive materials in an already inflammatory situation.
Wherever he is – There are two generally accepted options here for his final destination
He is either sitting on a wee fluffy cloud strumming cheerfully on a harp or
He is in a not-so-nice burny place where he is equally unperturbed because, as discussed above, his professional training ideally equips him to handle just such a situation.
Audible Excitement
AnElephant now does a reading of this delightful poem, which he believes to be a traditional rhyme with no copyright.
If this is not the case he is of course happy to acknowledge his mistake and give credit where due.
Notes, Disclaimers and other General Comments:
1. AnElephant’s brother is not called Bill.
2. AnElephant’s brother is not a Fireman, bold or otherwise. This is not intended in any way to cast aspersions on his boldness, bravery or courage, because if he was indeed a Fireman, AnElephant is quite sure he would be jolly bold.
3. AnElephant’s brother is not forty four and a half years old.
AnElephant fibbed about that to conceal his own age.
Which is a scarily big number between 6 and 1 million.
4. No brother of AnElephant was injured in the production of this post.
5. He has, to AnElephant’s knowledge, never been blown up by DYNAMITE!!!
Really enjoyed the poem, but your explanations had me laughing more. The photo’s lovely too. An all round feel-good post. 🙂
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You have made AnElephant very happy, thank you for the lovely comment.
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Dear Elephant –
My guys and one gal too are volunteers here in the States where 80% of all who ‘pits oot fires’ – don’t get paid. I’m going to have to copy this and post it at the fire house! Or at the very least show it to my crew. Our little one under three has quite a toy collection of fire vehicles and can tell you the names of the different trucks too!
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AnElephantCant hide his embarrassment
He tries to shelter behind his wee nose
He wants to advise
All your gals and guys
That we all know they are the real heroes
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Volunteer firefighters only do what is just and true
Expecting only that you too would do too
Perhaps in a different occupation
To help those of each and every nation –
They’ll all say they just love what they do.
Not to be put in halls of fame
Just to put out an unruly flame
Or save a kitty stuck in a tree
Assist medics with some medical need
An everyday Jack or Jill, different, but too – just the same
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My own brother he does it better,
When to every fire he goes,
And he gets each blaze even wetter,
Plus, he has his own built-in hose!
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He may do it better
You may well be right
But his hose is in trouble
When someone shouts DYNAMITE!
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It completely depends
On how it’s meant –
Maybe intent
Is a compliment?
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Wonderful!
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How awfully kind. Mammoth thank yous!
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Great Post, I enjoyed each element of your piece. The written words, the humour of it all. And of course a photo of the worlds best fireman! Thank you, your wit is excellent! 🙂 xx
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AnElephantCant deny it
His li’l buddy is a real shining light
He’s glad Penny’s amused
But he is slightly confused
When she talks of his wit she is only half right
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AnElephants notes and disclaimers where hilarious ! 🙂
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Well, AnElephant does try, shucks, ma’am …..
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AnElephant has create a wonderful post
One that couldn’t have been tamer
I’m sure with his pose
he could use his trunk as a hose
But I seriously love the disclaimer
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AnElephantCant use his trunk as a hose
He is not bold enough for that
On the bright side you see
He has been to the tree
So he can beat out the flames with a cat
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The little fellow is adorable.
Putting out fires is admirable
And the reading with the poem
Is quite lovely and jolly. A gem
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Encore merci
Ma chere Emmy
Tes mots donnent plaisir
To AnElephant’s ear
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