Wednesday, June 8, 2011

I love this life. I am a police officer’s wife.

I am a Police Wife


I have an issue, and I see that it is only my issue.

You see I am a Police officer’s wife.

I don’t have sympathy for criminals.

I don’t care if you think the cop was a jerk, I am on his side.

When I find out about a cop being a jerk, I want to see him hang; he put MY husband in a bad light.

When I hear friends and family saying negative things about cops I wonder what kind of criminal they are.

I have found that not all criminals are bad people, and some good people are criminals.



But I am sure most people can at least understand that.

I get fired up, angry almost, when I hear people talk like it is no big deal being a cop, or being married to a cop.

Don’t get me wrong, being a cop is just a job like being a janitor, banker, or CEO. Okay well a CEO would make a heck of a lot more money!

There are differences however. There are things about this life that people on the outside may never fully get. It is hard to truly understand the worry a wife goes through when she hears the cop sirens going off and cannot get a hold of her husband. There is a worry when he says he cannot tell her what happened at work today. There is a slight worry when he is called into court for something out of the normal. There are worries when, 6 hours after the end of a shift he is still not home, but there is a knock on the door.

With that worry there is also a pride. The cop is the one out there dealing with people the rest of the world would rather think didn’t exist. The cop is the one out there putting his life on the line for others. He is the one who deals with the verbal abuse after some drunk calls about her drunken husband.

There is also the simple feeling of being a single parent. Most wives understand this from time to time, a husband working late or strange hours. I get that. I don’t think police wives are the only ones who feel this way. Yet it is hard. The 12 hour days, changing shifts, training that lasts days, weeks, or months. Trying to schedule everything around a strange changing schedule is hard. Then when he is home, and not asleep, it is a change to get him fitting into our lives again, and again, and again. After 5 years it has gotten better, but not ideal.

Still the worst part is the feeling of being alone, like no one understands what it is like to be married to a cop. In my small town the police wives are few, and none of us very close. I tend to envy the army for the simple fact that most people of the same rank are around the same age, and they live in the same neighborhoods. They understand the dangers of their husbands’ job, and they know what is like. It is not that way for police wives.

I think this is why I write this, I think it is why I reached out to so many police wives online. I am not alone; I just had to get creative to reach others. And although we are not all the same as police wives, some of us are in big cities, some in small towns, some work for the city, others for the county or even the state. We all understand the strange stresses that this job brings to the family. And the pride we have for all our Law Enforcement Officers. I love this life. I am a police officer’s wife.

14 comments:

CAcopwife said...

That is why I started blogging too. Its a unique life and I don't think you can possibly "get it" unless you are living it.

Bulldog Badge said...

thanks for this post! as a police officer's wife, you've captured everything i think and feel just can't put into words. even though our LE life is a rollercoaster, i wouldn't change it for anything! =)

Anonymous said...

You are not alone. And yes, if you are not one, you don't get it. The hours, the stress, the idiots, the standing level of fear/concern/worry that is a part of every day. There is also the joy in knowing that my husband does love what he does! I am proud of him!

courtney of beads by breul

mrs. fuzz said...

Great post! This is something I think we all think about often. It is strange. That worry and pride all at the same time, isn't it?

Monica said...

I love it too!great post,nice to find others that "get it"!!

Sister Copinherhair said...

Amen, sister! I credit the success of my relationship with Indubitably thus far to all of you. Without the camaraderie I have found online with all of you amazing women, I just couldn't have hung in there! It takes a special kind of woman to do what we do.

Farming Mama said...

Great post, totally captures that feeling of being a cop's wife. I too live in a small community, and the other cops wives aren't all that close. I hear you about reaching out online & connecting that way, because we aren't alone :)

Anonymous said...

This is also why I started blogging. There are also a few positive "cop's wife" groups out there. They were started by Lynn at http://hiddenpartners.org/ and I know there are a few others out there. We just started one here last year and it has been amazing. I get so upset when friends (especially on facebook) post about how brutal cops are because they shot a marine who was pointing a gun at them and other ridiculous things like that. When they just plain hate cops, I, too, wonder what kind of criminal they are. Great post

Anonymous said...

Thank you all! Your comments put a smile on my face. It is great to know that you gals get it. I don't feel like I am writing to a brick wall, I am not alone. None of us are. Even if we just had to find new ways to reach out.

On another note, I cannot seem to comment on anything! Not even my posts. I dont know what is going on it is just a loop, over and over again I log in. If anyone knows how to fix this let me know!

~Yellow
yellow@ammointhedryer.com

CAcopwife said...

Yellow, I had the same commenting problem for about a week in May. One day it was just fixed. Sure was annoying while it lasted though.

Anonymous said...

Ammo in the Dryer is what caught my eye... I thought I was the only one finding bullets in the dryer! Our 'normal' is what most other people consider abnormal. I grew up with a LE Dad, my husband became a police officer-19 years now (SWAT)... I have 17 year old twin boys talking about LE as a career... I just keep praying! Love your blog!! Thank you!!

MOnica LnP said...

In regards to not being able to post another blogger told me they had to change their setting for comments from embedded below post to pop up and it works!

Yellow said...

Thanks for the info Monica! It might help people comment on my blog, but will it help me comment on other blogs? at the top of a blog it does not even show that I am logged in which is strange.

SCW Stella said...

I hope when I do my show, I will be speaking for all of us, in a new format, and perhaps it will impact and illuminate the various hearts assembled in my audience!
We shall see!
:)
SCW Stella