Every year in May, the families of Law Enforcement observe National Police Week. It’s a somber week filled with memorials, remembrance, and reflection. Prior to my husband starting his career in Law Enforcement, I had no inkling that such a week existed. It wasn’t something that I ever thought about. Now it is a part of my life that I will take with me to the grave. It is a yearly reminder of the rigors and dangers that the job brings with it. It is a reminder that over 22,000 Law Enforcement Officers have been killed in the line-of-duty since the first recorded death in 1786.
This week is a time to honor the fallen, but I can’t help but reflect on both the living and the dead. It always makes me think about the kind of person who is called to do this job. Who signs up to do a job knowing they may pay the ultimate price doing it? Who signs up to be hated just for the uniform they wear? Who signs up to be scrutinized by the public just for doing what they are trained to do? Heroes do. I have always hesitated to use that word to describe LEOS because when you lift anyone up too high, the fall can cause great damage. Let’s be honest, most LEOS would never consider themselves heroes. They would tell you they are simply doing their jobs.
I looked up the dictionary definition of “hero,” because I never really thought about the official meaning. It has a few different definitions, but one struck me as accurate when describing LEOS. It simply means, “one who shows great courage.” If that doesn’t describe a Law Enforcement Officer I don’t know what does. They know the inherent dangers of the job yet they continue to respond to every call. They continue to run toward the danger in order to save their fellow citizens in need. Who does that? If I heard gunfire, I’d run the other way. I certainly wouldn’t run toward it. LEOS continue to put themselves in harms way despite the narrative that they are the bad guys. I’ve never heard of a bad guy risking their life to save that of another.
I have always considered my husband my hero. Long before he entered the field of Law Enforcement, he was protecting and sacrificing for me and our children. Somehow, it just made sense to me when he said he wanted to go into Law Enforcement. The thought of him possibly losing his own life to protect a stranger’s is always in the back of my mind, and it is terrifying, but I know that God has a plan and this is what He called him to do. Holding onto faith is hard sometimes and I find myself getting my breath knocked right out of me every time I learn about another line-of-duty death. I find myself in the wife’s shoes for just a moment. I find myself crying for her and feeling that deep ache that just can’t be dulled.
This week each year, I make it a priority to learn more about the meaning of police week, but most importantly I take the time to thank God for the men and women who have chosen to do the job, especially the ones who have made the ultimate sacrifice or have been disabled in the line-of-duty. This week I will pray for the families that have been left behind. I will never stop praying for those families because every time we lose a LEO, we lose a part of our family.
l Michelle l