OF FRIENDS AND HEROES         by Dan Neizmik – Hearthstone

     (A story of unity and one small town’s awakening).

It was just another day, like any other day,

In a small town, somewhere in the USA,

No one knew how their lives would change,

The day that small town came together to pray.

Like many other towns, there was a black and white divide,

Some people in that town, could not see eye to eye,

They didn’t talk with one another, or let their children play,

But they were soon to find, God works in mysterious ways.

One day a fire broke out, in an old abandoned house,

And everybody gathered, to watch it burning down,

Then fear struck through the heart of that little town,

When they heard the screams of children coming from that house.

No one ever knew, it was where the children played,

Children of all colors, who were good friends all the same,

Soon, small children came running out, as their lives were being saved,

By two special little girls, little heroes, they were very brave.

One of them was white and the other one was black,

Those two brave little heroes, just kept on running back,

To save the smaller children, but now they both were trapped,

Looking down from a window, at all the friends they had.

When a fireman, named Jacob, happened to arrive,

And with a policemen named John, both quickly ran inside,

Through a sea of smoke and flames, shooting toward the sky,

With no thoughts of their safety, or regard for their own lives.

Soon Jacob, who was black, came running from the house,

Carrying a little white girl named Jessie, to the cheers of the crowd,

But the excitement and smiles, quickly turned to sighs,

As more and more precious time was passing by.

The people of that small town, all joined hands and realized,

That they were really all the same, especially in God’s eyes,

They stood and prayed together, while staring at that fire,

Soon they knew that they were standing, in the presence of God’s smile.

Then their prayers were answered, and from the grips of harm,

Appeared a white policeman, with a little black girl named Tessa, in his arms,

And as he lowered her to the ground, she quickly threw her arms around,

Her very best friend Jessie… friends and heroes had changed that town.

In the years that followed it became a very close-knit little town,

Sometimes it takes the children to teach us all to get along,

John gave a speech, when his best friend Jacob retired,

Jacob, now the Fire Chief, said he’d seen his share of fires.

But then sadly for John, who had hoped to police for another year,

One day his life was cut short by a stranger, as he sat there in his car,

Jacob spoke at his funeral, and said John had lived a very blessed life,

He’ll be missed by that small town, and all his good friends ~  black and white.