Perfect

You never know what to expect on a domestic violence call, or what might jump off. We rolled up in front of a house that was worth somewhere around half a mil. There was a Hummer in the drive and a BIG BMW in the garage. The house was decorated beautifully, and nothing was out of place…except the residents. The husband was threatening to beat his wife to death. She called 911 from a downstairs bathroom, while he retreated to the upstairs bedroom to feign innocence. Their 20-year old son, sat on the couch indifferently watching “Gladiator” on TBS.

Outside the house, the neighborhood probably thought these folks had it all together. Beautiful home, nice cars, good looking people… who wouldn’t want their perfect life?

At the end of the shift, he was in jail. She was filing her formal complaint.

I drove home in my 3-year old Impala, parked in the garage of my still mortgaged home, and gave thanks for my perfect wife, my perfect kids, and my perfect life.