The town of Metamora, the state of Texas and the nation of Canada have a bold and unique manner of responding to serious, threatening dangers to their citizens. Canada will meet the challenge of a riot by sending one Royal Canadian Mounted policeman. Texas will send one Texas Ranger and Metamora will send one Metamora police officer.

I learned this fact during a recent power outage. After a long evening of television entertainment, I slipped into the lowest position of my electrically operated recliner, which I have done many times. After watching the last show for the night I press a button and I easily rise to a standing position and shift to my walker and gently and easily slip off to bed for the night.

Not so on the night when we lost our power and the recliner froze in that lowest position and trapped me, unable to find a way to rise.

At first I laughed at myself then explored the possibilities of freeing myself. After a few failures I decided to simply wait a few minutes in the dark until the power was restored. Mary brought me a heavy blanket to fend off the growing cold.

After five hours of failed attempts to free myself and futile alternate efforts to simply relax and wait for the absent power to return, serious concern began to develop and then pure panic crept in. The silenced phones were not working, including the uncharged cell phone.

It dawned on me that I was wearing a Call Alert button around my neck. I dared to push it. An operator immediately responded. Mary explained the situation and described our failed efforts.

She was told that Metamora Emergency Services would be notified, then soon added that help was on its way. Relief came upon me as I wondered how many people and how many tools and types of equipment would be needed to lift me out of my confinement.

Before I could come to any conclusions, Mary opened the door to a lone police officer holding a flashlight. I felt doomed to remain trapped forever. Police Chief Walter Sierakowski’s calm and confident manner immediately eliminated the doom factor as he reviewed my failed efforts and began plans of his own to get the job done.

Eventually he determined that an entirely new support structure was needed for the stalled recliner mechanism. Then with spectacular ingenuity he proceeded to rapidly build one, using stacks of books to create a safe and efficient escape path. Seemingly in no time, in following his direction, he had me standing free of the frozen recliner and leaning on my walker, ready and able to march off to a good, needed and peaceful sleep as the sun began to rise.

The power was eventually restored four hours later, long after Metamora’s one-man posse had restored peace and security in our minds, hearts and home. I hope that Chief Sierakowski knows how grateful we are, though there is no way I could properly express my thanks.

How great it is to live and be rescued in Metamora. Good luck Canadians and Texans.

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