The past few years, police officers have been in the spotlight for misuse of force and racial profiling and, as a society, it’s easy to lose sight of what it really means to make a decision to serve and protect. It’s easy to separate the person from the job and not realize the effects this intensely negative perception of the men and women in blue and their families. Am I a police officer? No. Do I want to be one? Not at all. But I do love one, and I want to take a minute to humanize these officers. So, here are some facts of life when you love a police officer.
Fear.
Especially recently, there has always been a fear that your son, daughter, husband, etc., won’t come home. You’ll get a call that his or her watch has ended, and your world is shattered. It’s a nightmare that we’ve all had probably more than we would ever wanted to admit. That fear, however, has extended into the home where it’s difficult to feel safe, even as family. It’s a strange thought to know that there is someone out there who probably wants your boyfriend, girlfriend, or fiancé dead and would go after them if they have the chance. You get used to it, like how you get used to headaches.
The need for sleep.
You learn that it’s very important. More important than it was before. It will be important for your officer, because they probably just came off a 12-hour shift and part of it was probably spent chasing after someone or trying to preserve his or her life in some way. They’ll start dozing off during a date, or during family functions. Things will start to get back on schedule their last day off but then they’ll be headed back to bed at weird hours to make sure they're alert for their shift.
Lack of communication.
Because of your conflicting schedules, you may hardly talk. There will be a “good morning” when you wake up to go to work or school, and there will be a “good night” when you’re getting in bed and they’re heading out. That’ll be it, some days. You’ll have to work together to keep to make sure that your relationship is a priority. That means staying up a little later to send them off or waking up a little earlier to welcome them home. You might have to send that message more than once, just to make sure that they get your message.
“To Serve and Protect.” These men and women have pledged their lives to protecting the citizens in their jurisdiction. They’re willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice to maintain peace and order. But they have families and lives outside of that pledge. There is so much tension concerning the police, and the added pressure doesn’t help safety. It makes officers questions themselves when they don’t have time to do so.
It’s not an easy job; if it was, there would be more officers and less political attention. There’s a person under that uniform just like there is a person under every single criminal they take into custody. Justice is a gray area, but humanity is black and white. Just remember that next time you run into an officer. Remember they’re someone’s son, daughter, significant other, father, or mother. And remember that they’re just doing their job.
