If Today was your Last Day

Two in one day…what can I say I was struck and had to jot this down.

This has been a good couple weeks for me as far as music goes. Then again it’s been a good couple of weeks in general. More on the music though, P!nk has a new album out, and she’s one of my favorites and Nickelback’s new album came out as well. There is a song on it that stuck a chord with me. Anyone who has read a few or even a couple of my posts will know immediately why. It’s called “If Today was your Last Day”. I was at work today when one of the women asked me “Did you write that?” I laughed, no I surely didn’t but it sure sounds like me. Give it a listen, you’ll see why.



It’s true, all of it. Life is a gift, it’s not something anyone should take for granted, it goes by so fast. I always wonder if in the greater scheme of things people remembered that singular thing if it would change their perspective. I wish sometimes I could infuse someone with what the old Chief’s secretary used to call “Anjie’s perspective” when one of the rookies asked what that meant exactly she said simply, “Brutal, honest, and usually too much perspective for those who don’t have any.” There’s a reason I still bring this woman flowers on holidays, I just love her to pieces. 76 years old and if she retires I fear what would happen to the department, she’s the glue that holds the entire place together. Cops don’t mince words when talking to other cops. There’s no point, you give them the straight raw deal, saves time. I learned that from Kit my old Senior Officer. Don’t dress it up, you confuse the issue, just say it.

Cops see too much, we have perspective on things most normal people never see or deal with. Yes that sentence is everything it implies. Anyone who takes offense to cops not being normal hasn’t been on the force long enough to get it. Normal people don’t willingly miss every holiday, anniversary, birthday, to spend it with criminals who hate them. Normal people don’t get excited that some woman dropped off cookies at your work on Christmas Day, while your family is having Christmas dinner and you’re babysitting some heroin addict in a cell who is on suicide watch. The job gives you way too much perspective on every facet of life. In many ways it’s bad, but in some ways it’s good too. It reminds you of all the things in this song. It reminds you to stop and smell that rose, because tomorrow it may be gone.

Most people plan for tomorrows, for next year, and all of these are good but they forget to enjoy the day, to spend the time doing the things that they may not regret until it’s too late. I don’t regret the missed holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries. I don’t do regrets. I don’t regret a minute of the time I spent on the force, but if I were to walk away from it having learned nothing, to refuse to see the lessons so plainly shown to me, it would be quite simply a shame.

I try my best in my life to remind people that this is it folks. This is the only shot you get, make every moment of it worthwhile. It goes by so fast, and there are no “take backs” or “Do overs”. This is it.

Each person reading this I ask each of you to remind someone you love, that you love them. Send an email or pick up the phone, and call someone you haven’t spoken to in too long. Give someone something, a compliment, a rock (those who know me well understand, and one of these days I’ll write that whole thing up here), something, anything from your heart. It’s not that hard. The rewards are worth it. Do it once and it can become a habit!

I offer all a challenge to any brave enough to take it. I challenge you to be so daring as to give a compliment to at least one person every day for an entire week, and mean them. How you do this is up to you, but the easy way out is to offer them to your spouse or family, the difficulty is in broadening that scope beyond your immediate comfort level. It’s hard, but I have faith that some of you have the fortitude to give it an earnest effort.