my job here is done!

What the "general" public doesn't realize...

When you work in a field such as mine, you literally live behind the scenes.

You are the voice that is heard and the face that is never seen..
You give them the advise they want to hear, because no matter what you say, they will be right!
You send them the help they need..
You are a counselor..
You are a ear to bend..
You very rarely get thanked for doing what you do best..
You are often reminded that "I pay your salary"..
You get yelled, screamed and cursed at on a daily basis..
You are lied to..
You have to ask questions to get the information you need when the caller is less than cooperative and wanted YOU to take care of their needs yesterday!

You are also in a position, remember, I said YOU, meaning 1 person, will be assigned a radio channel that has anywhere from 10 to 30+ officers at one time YOU are in charge of..
You will get several people talking to you at one time and wanting all their information at the very moment they requested it..
You may be in a position were you are laughing w/your co-workers then in an instant you will find yourself getting help to an officer whom has just been involved in a critical incident! You don't have time to ask questions, your adrenaline kicks in and you do what needs to be done. You don't have time, until you lie down to sleep to worry about what had happened. Your too busy taking the next call for help or assisting the next officer with a request he or she may have!

You have NO idea but by your own senses if it is light or dark outside, sunny or raining, but you must know EXACTLY where all your officer's are and be able to direct any unit within the city to where you need them.
You also have to convey to them, paint a picture if you will, all the information they need in order to handle the particular incident.
All the while you never see the caller, you will never see the crime, you will never see the officer and you will never see the end result! If you have built a re poor with the officer and you are able to talk to him or her {most likely via computer} about the incident/call you had in common with he or she is the only way you may get some sort of closure or peace with what may have happened..

At the end of your shift you simply unplug your head set and you go home.
You have NO closure!
You have NO outlet!
You deal with tragedy as it is happening..You may re-live it while watching it on the news or reading about it in the paper..see the faces of who it affected, see them cry or see them mourn..
You wonder who they are, where they came from and how will they survive?

as for ME, it is just another day at the office!