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| It's the little things in life |
| By Bryan Avila, TDCJ Correctional Training Instructor - Sergeant of Correctional Officers |
| Published: 12/16/2013 |
There are times that we feel like we have lost our humanity due to the nature of our job that and the things that we see but every now and again something happens that remind us of the good things in life. This last week I had one of those moments that made me laugh so hard that I almost peed myself.
Now that we are at in the final days of the academy it is time to meet what for some is their worst nightmare: firearms. This one trainee, I’ll call him EJ, is deathly afraid of them. Firearms are not a good thing where he is from. As we started talking about firearms in class I could see that we seemed to be getting more nervous as the time approached to go qualify with them. I was doing everything within my power to keep him calm and not go into a panic attack. The moment of truth finally arrived for him. We went out to shoot the shotgun and as he approached me on the firing line I noticed that he looked like a newborn calf walking. He looked at me, composed himself and I asked him if he was ok. He said that he was. As he starts to do the safety check I notice that he is doing everything perfectly. No hesitation. No stumbling or fumbling around. I’m thinking to myself he’s going to be OK. Then it’s time to shoot… I tell him to chamber a round. He does so. I instruct him to fire both rounds that he has loaded. He fumbles a little with the safety and fires the first round. As soon as the round goes off he closes his eyes, exhales slowly and whispers very slowly “Jesus Christ…” Since I can be a little sarcastic at times, I lean into him and whisper back “I’m not Jesus Christ. I’m Sgt. Avila.” He slowly nods and says “OK, Sir.” He ejects the spent shell, reloads his final round, pulls the trigger and slowly closes his eyes again. He exhales even slower this time and whispers “Sgt. Avila…” It took me a second to register what he said and as soon as it hit me I started laughing so hard that start to double over and grab the shotgun out of his hands. I hadn’t laughed that hard in a long while and at that point in time I really needed that. I had forgotten that laughter was the best medicine for many things. All too often we seem to take the little things for granted. This profession drains a lot out of us and we forget how it may affect others. We have to remember those that make us who we are and are there for us when we need them the most. Family will always be the most important thing that we have and they are the ones that are there for us when we think that we don’t need anyone else. With Christmas only one week away take this time to remember the good things in life that are not work related. Not all of us will be able to be with our family during the holidays. Reach out to friends and family you haven’t spoken to in a while (you know, the one’s you say to yourself “I’ve got to call them” but never get around to actually doing it). Our time is short so take every opportunity to remember the good things in life. Be safe this holiday season wherever you are. If you drink, don’t drive. If you drive, don’t drink. See you all in the New Year… Merry Christmas Editor's note: Corrections.com author Bryan Avila started working as a Police Officer in 1994 while attending Norwich University in Northfield, VT. In 1999 he began working for the Vermont Dept of Corrections while still working as a Part-Time Police Officer. In 2007 he left public service until 2009 when he began working for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. He is currently a Correctional Training Instructor- Sergeant of Correctional Officers, at the TDCJ Region I Training Academy located in Huntsville, TX. Other articles by Avila: |
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