Sirens in the Country

Sirens in the Country

Friday morning, I was out just a little after daylight going through my morning routine. I was feeding the horses and just generally looking things over as I do every morning. Off in the distance, I heard a siren that sounded like it was coming from Lawton. It was still and it must have been several miles away. My first thought was “I wonder if that is heading somewhere toward one of my neighbors”? The thing that struck me was that it sure seemed like a long time for that siren to go get closer. Most people who live in town do not think much about a siren because they are likely to hear several throughout the course of a day. However, those of us who live out in the country may not hear one for an entire month. So, it makes you perk up because your mind goes to “I hope nothing happened to one of my neighbors” or “I hope there has not been a wreck” or any number of thoughts. Now, keep in mind that for us rural folks, a neighbor could be three miles away because we tend to know the people who live around us and we tend to care.

As I headed back to the house to get ready for the rest of day, my mind went to the recent home invasion near Cache where tragedy struck just a few days ago. Two lives were lost and a family is now dealing with the grief. We take things for granted in rural Oklahoma. You often hear someone say “I do not even lock my door”. But, we cannot take for granted that bad things only happen in the cities. Rural folks are not immune to these things. We tend to let our guard down but we really have to stay vigilant and we need to be careful. And of course, there is the school of thought which I tend to agree with which says that we need to be prepared to take care of ourselves.

That siren in the distance really magnified the fact for me that help can be a long way off when you are in a jam. Whether that jam consists of a health issue, or a fire, or even a robbery or home invasion. It is one the reasons that rural legislators fight so hard for volunteer fire departments. It is one of the reasons that we need to make sure that small communities have some type of ambulance service. I can tell you that in Comanche and Tillman counties, the two counties that I serve as a state representative, the sheriffs departments do a great job with limited resources. However, these areas are very spread out and unless they just happen to be going down your road, it may be twenty minutes before anyone can reach you to render aid of any kind. I guess it is one of the trade offs that we are willing to live with, but it does not take away the fact that we need to be prepared and that we need to pay attention.

I find myself looking over my neighbors’ places as I drive by just to make sure that things do not look out of sorts. I check to see if there is a gate left open or a strange car where it should not be. I think that is the way that most of us are. With the advent of cell phones, we can call each other at the drop of a hat if something is not right. Now, I am not advocating that people take the law into their own hand or that we become vigilantes or anything like that. But, we still have to be as prepared as we can and watch out for one another. Bad things can still happen to good people. But, when something like the incident that occurred a few days ago happens, it makes us a little more cautious. I know at the Armes household, we start making sure the doors are locked, taking the keys out of vehicles and all sorts of normal precautions. Let me tell you, there is nothing I hate worse than to get into a vehicle without the keys in it. I always tend to think “my neighbor may break down and need a pickup”. Unfortunately, in this new day and time, it may not be practical to think that way. It is really kind of sad when you stop and think about it. Lots of times people move away from town to get away from the bad element that a concentration of people can bring. But, as we have said before, living in the country does not make us immune.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the Miller family at this time as they deal with this very tragic situation. I think we all need to “step it up a notch” as neighbors and friends. We must look out for one other and do our best to help rural Oklahoma remain a great place to live.

If you would like to contact me while I am at the capitol, please do not hesitate to send an email to donarmes@house.gov or call me at 1-800-522-8502.

And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:

“Fear is the foundation of safety.” -Tertullian