My TV debut at age three was very
exciting. I have only vague memories of
appearing on a locally produced show that was broadcast to our hometown and
surrounding areas. It was fun sitting with the other kids and watching
cartoons, and waiting for our turn to talk to the host, and his microphone.
This is the part that made my mother, in the studio audience, very nervous. You see, I had two well meaning- translate
that ornery- teenaged neighbor boys who had been helping me rehearse for this
moment. Along with learning to repeat my name, address and age, they coached me
to answer the question “What does your Daddy do?” with the answer “Drinks
beer.” I can remember sitting on the curb with them as they dissolved with
laughter after my sweet pronouncement. The answer would have been embarrassing
to any mother, but in this town where everyone knew everyone, they also knew that
my Daddy really spent his days and nights as the local state trooper. Luckily,
that question didn’t come up during the interview, and Mama’s nerves were
preserved.
My Daddy and his police car were a
common sight in our little town. I remember standing by with pride when he led
the college homecoming parade down our main street with his lights and siren
blaring. Another early memory involves the time I had taken a spill, and he
used it to transport me to the emergency room for stitches in my chin. So, yes,
I must confess I have ridden in the back of a police car once in my life.
The other policemen in town were our
friends, and we spent time with them and their families during their precious
off hours. Since I was the older of two girls, my Daddy was often assigned the
duty of keeping me out of Mama’s hair, so we would go for a ride (in our
private car) to one of his buddy’s houses. Not many people know that the
sheriff in our Kansas county was the owner of a parakeet. I was captivated by
this pet, and must have begged for one, because we had a few in our house when
I was small.
My parents divorced when I was five. But, we were still very close to the law
enforcement community. We would always wave at policemen as they passed. We
always still viewed them as our friends.
As I grew up, I learned that a
policeman’s job was not always glamorous. My dad was fortunate never to be
seriously injured while on duty, but he did have a glass baby bottle broken
over his nose during a family disturbance, and his eyebrows were singed when he
pulled someone out of a burning car. He did, of course, continue on the force
in his new home, ending up on the Kansas Turnpike for most of his career. His
fifteen minutes of fame came when the Kansas City Star newspaper did a feature
story about him. They reported that he spent many more hours changing tires and
rescuing stranded motorists than he did issuing speeding tickets.
With a background like this, it is
predictable that my husband and I raised our kids to respect and admire police
officers. Where other children may have seen them as someone who would take
them to jail if they did wrong, our kids were taught to seek the men in uniform
when they were lost or in any trouble. We knew that these men and women were
public servants, with our best interests in mind, and that they had families at
home who couldn’t wait for them to return safely after their shift was over.
Today, with criticism of police
officers showing up from all directions, we tend to want to hear their side of
the story. Of course, there are some who should not be wearing the badge. Just
like there are probably some very poor examples of human resource analysts and
monthly magazine columnists out there. But, overall, these young men and women
have pledged to support us, and we should return the favor.
I still wave at police officers, and
often tell them “Thank-you” for standing in the gap for us. They are all
someone’s son, or daughter, someone’s brother or sister, someone’s Mama, or if
the kids are very lucky, someone’s Daddy.
