We all have them. Some you pick, others choose you, usually after sharing a common interest or goal. Still, other relationships are formed following unique experiences during time spent together. That variety of qualifiers aptly describes the friends and coworkers I have had the pleasure of knowing during a lifelong career in emergency medical services.
Some friends are bonded for a reason or a season. That common interest or event brings you together for a brief period; then, you or the acquaintance go your own way. The reasons for parting vary for better or worse. There are the buddies I have known from childhood on through school to adulthood. I shared a cold drink recently with a few; remembering the youthful antics drew some laughs all over again.
For me, a lifetime of shiftwork strained some friendships. Some of the best pals came and went with work schedules, physical distance from career moves, others with family demands. In the end, they are great friends because you know they will always answer a call or email. They never really disconnected, just drifted off to follow their own paths.
Perhaps the most intense bonds that I have with some friends and acquaintances have been workmates. To be clear, that statement should not and will never diminish the value I hold with friends not associated with my career. When you think of it, your closest bonds as a child are with schoolmates, where your days were spent in a classroom.
As you pass into adulthood, often your career path settles you into a regimen of over two thousand hours a year, spent with people with similar interests and the same tasking. In my case, the role of a first responder. The nature of the profession fortified the bond I share with friends to this day.
With Remembrance Day just behind us, I am reminded that responders share a similar bond with soldiers after sharing some intense experiences. Perhaps closest to wartime or battleground incidents are the emergencies that responders face during peacetime. One of the noticeable differences is that responders go home after a short tour as opposed to being embedded in battlefield conditions 24 hours a day until relieved. My father sparingly shared his experiences, revealing the differences between our callings.
As I pushed back from my career, my family warned me to keep active. My sister raised her concerns that I might withdraw now that workmates were still on the job while I sat at home. Surprise, surprise. I have heard some retired friends admit they don’t know where they would find time to fit work in today with their social life in high gear. I joined that club.
My days are now filled with activities like offering to help at Fanshawe College, meeting old EMS friends for breakfast, golfing with some pals, and volunteering with other retired first responders at several events. That’s in addition to family time, writing a book and special events. Nope, who could fit a twelve-hour shift in there? Retirement is good. Family and friends are the best!