The Thin Blue Line

He slips on his uniform he straps on his gun, his wife kneels beside him and hopes this isn't the one, She hopes this isn't the shift where he doesn't come home, She hopes she wont be a widow, left all alone, She hopes that her daughter wont have to walk her self down the aisle, hopes her daddy will be there to see her beautiful smile, She hopes her daughter wont have to see her daddy on trial, She hears the awful rhetoric on Corporate news, She cries herself to sleep after hearing their views, She is filled with terror when he's the slightest bit late, Every time it happens she fears it's the day, He tries to comfort his beautiful bride, But every time he clocks in he's risking his life, The truth is he is also scared that today he might die, Sometimes they fight and argue because of the danger, Sometimes he perceives her concern as genuine anger, he understands the heights of her anxiety, Being an officers spouse can be frightening, But not as scary as being in the drivers seat, Because no matter what they say, no stop is ever routine, It isn't all about shooting and making arrests, Or high speed chases or physical tests, Sometimes they see the worst of the worst, They see the dead before they're embalmed and roll away in a hearse, They're tasked with delivering bad news, Scraping up remains, and keeping kids out of gang crews, They're obligated to take on the danger, Literally their job to take bullets for strangers, Yet all they hear from us is anger, Every day I see officers get demonized, Like they aren't seen as human lives, They take our calls, They hear our cries, I'll keep them in my heart and support them with pride, For I know they are the divide in between the good and evil side, Between civility and crime, They are my heroes, Those who walk The Thin Blue Line.