Educated

I try to imagine the moment of decision. Dad looks at the weeds, which are
burning fast, thirsty for flame in that quivering heat. He looks at his son. He
thinks if he can choke the flames while they’re young, he can prevent a
wildfire, maybe save the house.
Luke seems lucid. His brain hasn’t processed what’s happened; the pain
hasn’t set in. The Lord will provide, I imagine Dad thinking. God left him
conscious.
I imagine Dad praying aloud, his eyes drawn heavenward, as he carries his
son to the truck and sets him in the driver’s seat. Dad shifts the engine into
first, the truck starts its roll. It’s going at a good speed now, Luke is gripping
the wheel. Dad jumps from the moving truck, hits the ground hard and rolls,
then runs back toward the brushfire, which has spread wider and grown taller.
The Lord will provide, he chants, then he takes off his shirt and begins to beat
back the flames.^3