Life as a Cop's Wife

There are certain statements you never think you will hear yourself say. As a young girl fantasying about how married life would be, I never placed myself where I am now. I don't recall hoping to kiss my husband as he came through the door and tell him his drugs are on top of the refrigerator. I never imagined being asked to get his semi-machine gun out of his trunk. Going to dinner and always sitting with my back to the door so he can watch who is coming in and leaving. I go to lunch with friends in the same position as I and we stand staring at each other trying to figure out where we are going to sit because we have both been trained. But yet, I embrace those quirky circumstances like it is second nature.

I receive calls saying my soul mate is on his way to the emergency room, he was hit at an accident scene. I get the 6 a.m. call saying he's been in a shooting he's fine, he has to go; nothing more, just that. Or worse yet, his Supervisor calling and asking me to check him for bullet holes, they can't find one of the rounds being sprayed in his direction. And there I thought being a small town cop's wife would be dull and quiet. I truly feel for those wives in Los Angeles and Miami.

I spent many years listening to the scanner while he was on night shift duty, hoping it would be a quiet night. Most nights roll by with nothing more than a DUI, while others end in a high speed chase or worse yet, a young punk looking to kill a cop. Yes, it happens, its just not publicized. A kid in our town, meth addict, decided he would walk into the Police department's parking lot and shoot the first cop he saw. Fortunately, his aim is terrible and he missed.

I prepare my kids for the hidden dangers that most families don't have to face. They don't walk anywhere by themselves, because everyone knows who their dad is and what he does. Being on the drug task force has a tendency to make enemies. I watch my family as they become a little more cynical and jaded as the years go by. After the Shooting spree in Virginia, there was a shooting threat at my daughter's senior prom. I expected her reaction to be one of concern or fear, but she became angry. She knew the boy making the threat and had already gauged him and determined he didn't have it in him to do anything. Most kids don't have this radar that surfaces in times of crisis. Extra officers were brought in to ensure their prom was safe. Her favorite prom picture.... The one where she is surrounded by the cops who helped raise her.

Life is not what I expected growing up, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Being married to a CPA... well, that just isn't me.