Saturday, July 27, 2013

Heroes.

I guess everyone has a pedantic pet peeve and foremost amongst mine is the use of the word "Hero"in inappropriate ways. Sportsmen who save the day are called "Heroes", people who help old ladies across the road are "Heroic". The currency has certainly been debased but truly there are people who should be described as heroic: nurses who have to tolerate bad behaviour from patients they are trying to help and who have no option but to remain calm and professional, people who grind away in deadend jobs and who go home to their families every day without complaint, these are heroes.
These ponderings have been set in train this week by what can only be described as a truly pooey situation in our neighbourhood. Yep, the huge sewer main which runs along our back fence has imploded causing chaos downstream from us. Thankfully (though I do sympathise with those affected) we haven't had any issues. We have however endured the constant noise of the large trucks pumping waste from the access point in our garden in order for them to rectify the problem. Large bright blue hoses snake down our driveway, traffic cones block off the street and we have become quite a tourist attraction for local rubberneckers.
All of this activity prompted me to think that these folks who are here working late into the night in the cold and with a job description that isn't that attractive are the true heroes of our civilization. Workers in the frontline, doing a job nobody tells their careers adviser that they aspire to and remaining steadfastly cheerful through it all. Doing a job that most people are grateful that they don't have to do themselves.
Public sanitation has possibly saved more lives than antibiotics and all other medicines combined but nobody gives that a thought when they yank the chain!


4 comments:

  1. Hi,Oregame, very happy to read this post! Yes, I always tell "thank u" to (I call) any backstage players I bump in daily life. They are shy. My thanks often surprise them Most tell me, "Did u tell it to me?" with a shining, but a bit shy smile. They are blessed are..
    Best wishes, Sadami

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    1. Very true Sadami, we take so much for granted until something goes wrong.

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  3. I am relieved to see you back ... thought you must have been worn out by moving. I have never seen such a pretty sanitation truck. Did you ever see that movie Kenny, about the dunny chap? Someone is taking notice of our true heroes at last!

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