10-42 - END TOUR OF DUTY

That big day has finally arrived
All I had to do was survive
Not take a life, nor give mine
So the Sheriff’s star will continue to shine
I came to work with mostly strangers
But still knew any of them would protect me from danger
I learned that we were closer than kin
But must fight a fight we could never win
In the face of despair and sorrow
We could only hope for tomorrow
We face horror, death and deceit
From any of society that we may meet
Men and women must work together
Against all fears and in all types weather
We meet all types of children and adults
Some are kind, others full of insults
You see children weep for Fathers and Mothers
And we must separate them from the others
You wipe the tears from a child’s eye
Inside you wonder will they survive?
You work each day as if the last
And hope the hours will pass so fast
For those who choose the Sheriff life
Will begin a job filled with strife
If things go bad the hours go on
Sometimes for days and days, oh so long
But we will make all the changes we possibly can
As we carry the badge and have never ran
We survive on hope and prayers, for money is tight
Can we work another night?
Day becomes night and night becomes day
For work is what we study, that is our way
We must work to be smarter than the judges and lawyers
For one mistake and we have new employers
We must use everything as a tool
And always talk not as a fool
We dare not make a public mistake
Or the front page we will make.
For all these years I have lived my dream
And worked with the most professional team
But life goes on and on
We hope for right and fight against wrong
We know not how to change the world
We pray the flag will not be folded, but unfurled
For I have walked the slow walk with friends
They were brave and proud till the very end
The sound of the bagpipes bring a tear
As one of our comrades has disappeared
We struggle and fight, Like the leaves in the wind
But cannot win, for God must decide in the end
For as we go, they know not who wore the badge before
Not whom, but only the badge is not ignored
Neither woman nor man has left a mark
That a memory of us the public shall spark
Of those giving souls that have been on the job
For what they saw could only sob.
To keep others safe and secure in their beds
Was all the thought in our heads
That big day has finally arrived
And I have SURVIVED!
I leave this job with one thing to say
Fight for right and that big day
For I know as my days pass, I will feel safe to the last
For OUR TEAM is still on the job and standing fast.

Detective Sergeant R W Lambert
Iredell County Sheriff’s Office- May 16, 1980-October 1, 2007

Congratulations and Thank you sir!

Thank you for posting this.