In the Line Of Fire

Someone once said, ~Law enforcement officers support us every day, but every 55 hours or 158 per year an officer makes the ultimate sacrifice.~ Without a doubt, being a first responder is considered to be a potentially dangerous career choice indeed, especially if that particular profession is law enforcement. For its most definitely a job where men and women in blue who proudly wear the uniform/badge head toward/into high risk situations knowing full well they'll be encountering, as well preparing for the unexpected along with the unpredictable. True, there's always a possibility of a police officer/officers losing their life/lives at any given moment whereby making the ultimate sacrifice as they respectfully honor in heroic fashion the code of to protect and serve.

If you think about it, when it comes to being in law enforcement it's a considerably challenging profession to be in and at the same time it can certainly be deeply meaningful too. Of course, when I say challenging I refer to situations where officers have to deal with a number of individuals on a semi daily basis whether they be intoxicated, belligerent, hateful, disrespectful, etc. all the while trying to exude a Zen-like patience. Thinking about it further, it truly baffles the mind how much patience it takes for any officer to not let their emotions take control when coming face to face with people who outright say or do something such as scream, spit, shout profanity, the threat of being physically attacked, run, etc. during a traffic stop and/or while being arrested.

As I said before, law enforcement it's a considerably challenging profession to be in and at the same time it can certainly be deeply meaningful too. Of course, when I say deeply meaningful I mean the moments that stick with an officer that are so immensely heartfelt and absolutely memorable that it brings not just a smile on their face, but tears along with it. I think it's safe to say there are countless officers who have shared stories involving saving the life of a child or children, which is a memory that tends to stick with them and will never forget. Of course, establishing a continued connection with the child/children in question to where there is a close relationship between each other makes the police officer-community bond quite stronger.

Let me ask you this question as it pertains to law enforcement, what is your personal opinion about them knowing full well they've been dealing with an inordinate amount of controversies in the past and as of late? Essentially, the following controversies I'm referring to are Eric Garner, Bothman Jean, Freddie Grey, etc., all garnering attention on simple police procedures escalating into a situation that crosses the line into an unfortunate senseless death. Hey, it's a hot button topic to discuss these days about police controversies to where the discussion can become absolutely heated knowing the issue of race will inevitably be involved. What it primarily comes down to is being able to have an open forum to freely discuss any and all solutions to what needs to be done to solve the problem.

In retrospect, I tip my hat to those who chose to be in law enforcement because even though it is at times a thankless job it can also be a rewarding one. Oftentimes, the rewards of the job far outweigh the mixture of emotions that can be absolutely overwhelming. Plus, it shows that police officers are human after all and can become greatly affected by the job itself. Granted, we as the general public don't have any idea the grand scale of what these officers go through personally, mentally, emotionally, physically, and/or spiritually as they've seen/heard things while on duty unless they're the spouse of that aforementioned officer. In the end, I say stay safe out there to all law enforcement who will always be in the line of fire no matter no matter the situation they find themselves in.