Our hearts were nearly broken,

Tears welled in our eyes,

As bush and houses burned,

And we all realised,

That the fires were taking hold,

And there was no relief,

The devastation continued,

Almost beyond belief.

Fire-fighters fought on,

As smoke filled the air,

Townships evacuated,

Devastation everywhere.

And in the aftermath,

When things had settled down,

Stock was taken of the loss,

Its magnitude profound.

But out of everything bad,

Comes something good,

And from these fires,

Came brotherhood.

Australians united,

With people from afar,

And many gave generously,

To help relieve the scars

My dad is a fireman,

I’m as proud as I can be,

When I grow up in many years,

That’s what I want to be.

He’s out there fighting fires,

Protecting property,

And when I finally grow up,

Well, that is going to be me.

He’s very dedicated,

Goes out there to help others,

Along with his special crew,

Who are as one, like brothers.

They’re selfless and enabling,

As they carry out their calling,

Trained and compassionate,

Stopping the fire from sprawling.

And that may work in cities,

But in the country it is bad,

Containment can be onerous,

And consequences sad.

It is a dangerous environment,

Where a fire can take its own,

Leaving a trail of destruction,

Including families, animals and home.

My dad encounters danger,

Nearly every single day,

And he is my true hero,

There’s little else I can say.