I once heard you tell a woman to “look in the mirror” when she was trying to work out a problem. That phrase hit me right between the eyes. I worked for the police force in Toronto for 25 years. Everyone knew about the “thin blue line” and how you were expected to back each other no matter what. I didn’t agree with this. More than once, I witnessed incidents where I didn’t like how they were handled.
When it came to writing reports, we were expected to not put in any information that would reflect poorly on any member. I found this impossible. I always said to myself “Can you respect the person looking back at you from the mirror if you write what is expected?” I was accused of being a “rat” on more than one occasion when I didn’t stick to the company line. I always wondered how you could be a rat when you spoke the truth, regardless of the consequences!
It's very hard sometimes to be true to oneself, but it is always worth the work. It’s much easier to be one of the cattle being led to the slaughter than to say “No! That’s not the way to deal with this situation!” I’m glad I’ve had the fortitude to do what I know to be right. It’s much harder, but so much more rewarding.
Debby
I Looked in the Mirror and Knew What To Do