What are we?
We are part of the most valuable group of people in this world!
Who else other than a brother or sister at arms goes where you go and does what you do?
If you are in law enforcement as a Peace Keeper/Soldier in the front lines of patrol, traffic control, investigations, K9, undercover investigations, SWAT, a bomb squad or any one of several other units, you are always there in some of the most dangerous places in our society… You are looking for the trouble spots before the trouble happens or you are there after the trouble has been discovered… You get there either by finding it or being assigned to go to it and handle it. You make a difference in lives, even in the lives of those people who do not know it!
Your assignment could be anything… Barking dog, lost child, missing person, motor vehicle crash, larceny, destruction to property, mugging, burglary, robbery, criminal assault, rape, murder or some unknown need that was described as, “Officer or citizen needs help – GO!” You could get injured or killed on the way because motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of law enforcement deaths this year… Or you could get ambushed after arriving at the scene – it could happen outside or inside… You could get captured to be used as a shield or hostage… Or have any one of numerous single event experiences that we all have had if we have been on the job very long. Be encouraged… I survived the job with only two small scratches… But I most emphatically learned how to care for myself as well as for others.
Jesus (My Eternal Captain) said, “The second greatest commandment is like unto the first… Love your neighbor as yourself. These two commandments sum up all the Law and the Prophets (everything God has to convey to us about living a fruitful life here).” (The first commandment was Love God with all your being, abilities and faculties)… Love other people you have contact with the same as you love you… And love you the same as you love others. It must be balanced to get the best results. That means taking as good care of you as you are sworn to do for others!!!… No more love for them than for you… And no less love for yourself than for them!!!… Therefore it is my habit every week to tell you to take good care of you as you care for and about others… “BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!!!
Sometimes, something having to do with job or home could be so heavily on your mind that you miss seeing something vital and chaos erupts… All of us have too much to be involved in and concerned about sometimes. Watch out for that… It is easy to fall into!
In the military much of the same is true for the Peace Keeper/Soldier there as well… Sent to trouble spots… Sent on Patrol (foot, motor vehicle, boat or air)… Sent on convoy duty… Sniper duty… or simply be resting in camp or on a ship in a war zone. You make a difference in lives!
As Peace Keepers of law enforcement or the military, we are expected to go to the trouble spots to which we are assigned and do what we can to solve the problem and restore peace. That is our mission… Keep the peace or restore the peace. Sometimes it can be simple… Sometimes it requires a great war! We are the pawns on the chessboard ( we chose to put ourselves there) and we move where we are told to go to do what we have sworn to do and been extensively trained to do… All of this message, so far, is generic words giving a description… The sights, sounds, smells and threats are absent in the generic description…
There are no smashed vehicles and torn bodies exuding numerous kinds of sounds and odors… You can read the generic version without fighting your gag reflex… Without feeling the sticky blood on your hands or under your boots… Sometimes the blood is mixed with foul smelling substances and vehicle fluids, some easy to identify, others not so easy to tell what they are or were…
Into all this the Peace Keeper MUST GO! That is a decision already made when you took your oath of office. You may be the only one assigned to go. You may have discovered the situation of need that must be handled immediately allowing no delay… AND YOU ARE ALONE! Man with a gun… Shots fired… Trapped occupant…
Or you are in a neighborhood of tightly crowded buildings and being sniped at… But you do not know where the sniper is… Or a child comes toward you wrapped in a blanket and crying… Person in need… A bait to lure you into a dangerous position… To throw you off guard… Or a bomb to blow you away? Both law enforcement and military have faced these situations far too many times… I have faced many of these and many other situations too numerous to list in my 50 year career.
If your career has been quiet and fairly uneventful… Be Thankful! If you have survived these and more and are alive to read this… Be Thankful!
If some of your older fellow Peace Keepers seem to be calloused, hard hearted and cynical… Be Thankful they have survived and are there to be of some help to you because of all they have experienced and learned!!!
I am writing this today because I hate being off the field (I miss it terribly) and away from all of you… And because my Commander-In-Chief has given such a great love to me for all Peace Keepers that I am drawn to this keyboard every Saturday to let these words flow from His heart and mine to reach out to you and try to love and extend knowledge, thought and protection to you through our words… Along with a great, powerful and deep Appreciation and Respect extended to you from us with those same words… For all of the sacrifices you have made, are making and will yet make for the peace, safety and welfare of all of those around you, THANK YOU!
I have patrolled the lonely mountains, hills, valleys, woods and rural areas… I have patrolled the jammed ghettos (where rats are big as cats) and patrolled in dense mid-cities… I have seen the sights, smelled the smells (use Vick’s Vaporub under your nose to cover and stifle the smell) and I have touched the repulsive… I have faced death and destruction too many times to remember and list them all… In all of this I knew that if I were not there in those moments, some one or more persons would have paid a terrible price for being in those situations without a Peace Keeper being there to assist them, help preserve their lives and bring perpetrators to justice. No amount of recognition from others can pale the Journey I traveled to get to here!!! EVERY PEACE KEEPER MAKES A GREATLY VALUABLE DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES LIVED IN THIS WORLD!!! THANK YOU FOR WHO YOU ARE, FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE, ARE DOING AND WILL YET DO!!! THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT COULD NOT AND WOULD NOT EXIST WITHOUT YOU!!! BE EVEN GREATER BLESSED!!!
“BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!” ALWAYS be alert, watchful, suspicious and wary. Take the very best care of you as you care for and about others. See to the strength and well being of your spirit as well as all the rest of yourself. Your spirit must be strong for you to be successful. All of this is by your own choice… He has made provision for you but it is up to you to learn it, take it and put it to use for the best results possible.
Call or write if I may be of any service… Or if you just want to encourage me… Feedback encourages all who write… It helps to know we are reaching someone who reads the message.
Donna is still at home and doing better. She is doing well with much less pain medication. We are still battling some situations but we are winning! That is good news we do not usually have!
Donnie is working this week… That is very good!
I saw my Retinal Specialist yesterday and he dismissed me… He said I did not need him anymore! One more great victory!
Thank you for the responses, care, concern and prayers… We are all in this together!
As it has always been… So it still is!!!
“VICTORIOUS WARRIORS WIN FIRST…
AND THEN GO TO WAR,
WHILE DEFEATED WARRIORS GO TO WAR FIRST…
AND THEN SEEK TO WIN.” Sun tzu
Training and practice are everything!
Without them, the best results are not obtained!
ONLY LIVE PEACE KEEPERS SEE THE VICTORY!!!
THEY SEE IT ONLY BECAUSE OTHERS HAVE MADE THEIR ETERNAL PAYMENTS OF SWEAT, BLOOD, TEARS AND LIFE FOR THAT VICTORY!
WITH THE DEEPEST OF APPRECIATION AND RESPECT…
BE BLESSED (A CONDITION TO BE ENVIED)…
BE SUCCESSFUL… BE SAFE…
[My injunction to be safe means doing all you know to do as you do your job... it means doing the best you can with what you have where you are using all your faculties to get the job done well and with good results conquering evil and keeping or restoring peace... it does not mean to avoid duty and honor... it does not mean to cower or allow anything to hinder you in the process of duty according to rules, law and ethics... it means that if the demand takes your earthly life you destroy as much evil as possible in the process. That is my definition of being safe... doing the best you can and leaving the rest to God or whomever else is responsible... being best employed for the sake and protection of all the things and people that we hold dear.]
I represent, write for… and give the credit to:
God the Father (my Commander-in-Chief),
Jesus Christ the Son (the Eternal Captain of my life) and
the Holy Spirit of God (my Eternal Teacher, Keeper and Guide).
In Christ I live… with Him and for you I serve…
And I rejoice that you are there whether you are Christian or not…
For God, Country and the Peace Keeper…
D. R. (Don) Staton, Chaplain to Peace Keepers,
Surviving Peace Keeper,
Virginia State Police Alumni,
RETIRED Police Officer,
RETIRED Police Instructor,
RETIRED Chaplain Administrator,
Chaplain Emeritus,
Community Service Officer (Traffic Safety),
Virginia Beach Police Dept.
Blackwater Alumni
757-486-3881, chpln1@verizon.net
3709 Beacon Lane, Virginia Beach, VA 23452
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All rights reserved. This Message:
Is for Peace Keepers and their loved ones and it may be forwarded with the complete message intact to individuals and web sites…
May not be duplicated in print nor publications without permission….
May not be used in any manner for personal financial gain nor profit
without permission.
Except for quoted material attributed to a specific source, all material in CHAPLAIN CORNER is my personal opinion gained from 49 years of working with people in peace keeping and is not to be construed to represent the policies and opinions of any department with whom I have served or am serving.
To subscribe to this free, weekly e-mail message for Peace Keepers,
write to Chaplain D. R. Staton at chpln1@verizon.net or at
3709 Beacon Lane, Virginia Beach, VA 23452.
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