They unappreciated

While our town has many heroes, we only need to look at the uniformed officers.

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between you and a law enforcement officer?

You wonder why he pulled you over and gave you a ticket for speeding, while he just worked an accident where people died because they were going too fast. You wonder why that cop was so mean. He just got done working a case where a drunken driver killed a kid.

You drink a hot coffee to stay awake. The cold rain in the middle of the night keeps him awake. You talk trash about your buddies that aren’t with you. He watches his buddy get shot at and

wounded in front of him.

You complain about how hot it is, when he wears 50 pounds of gear and a bullet-proof vest in July and still runs around chasing crack heads.

You get out of bed in the morning and take your time getting ready. He gets called out of bed at 2 a.m. after working 12 hours and has to be in to work ASAP for a homicide.

You are angry because the traffic is slow or your class runs over five minutes. His shift ended four hours ago and there’s no end in sight. You yelled and screamed at the squad car that just passed you because it slowed you down. He is in the driver seat of the squad car, going to cut somebody out of their wrecked car.

You sit there and judge him, saying that it’s a waste of money to have them around, yet as soon as you need help he is there.

The next time you see one of our local law enforcement officers, thank them for being where they are and being here in our town.

– Ron Copple