The Doctor
The junior doctor
who crawled,
drunken but uninjured
from the upturned wreckage
of the car he had chosen
as a suicide weapon.
The fresh-faced cop,
shocked by his luck
but outraged
at his recklessness
who breathalysed
and arrested him.
The sagacious magistrate
who listened impartially
to the evidence
before handing out
the punishment
required by the law.
The troubled poet,
a retired cop
who lies awake, now
understanding his pain;
hoping, too late,
he got the help he needed.
What you’ve learned and what he’s possibly learned, lessons that change people’s lives. Those missteps are needed to find new paths, as I say to remember but be forgiving of yourself.
If he succeeded, I would hope that it was his family and people who loved and cared about him that received help because they will be forever and ever asking questions of themselves that are unanswerable.
It is such a selfish and self-centred act but I can empathise with people who get into such a mess that they feel it’s their only way out. Sometimes they think the people they leave behind would be better off without them, although, of course, they never are. I dealt with many suicides as a cop and the stories behind them were often heart rending,
thanks for sharing this, Hobbo: it’s quite a story — and it’s repeated everyday; and you’re right: suicides are desperate; and I’m sure cops,ambos who come across such car wrecks are deeply affected; the last stanza is very powerful —
Thank you, John. Emergency workers do see some awful sights and sometimes, in a quiet moment, they can come back and haunt us. Writing about things definitely helps! 😂
Hobbo's Poems 
There must be a lot of stories that haunt a retired cop.
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Quite a few, yes! 😒
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😦
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Wow, that was heavy 👍
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True though!
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So you’re a retired cop ?
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In my past life, but more recently, I’m a retired school bus driver!
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Nice work, sir. Now. I wonder. You were that kind of “bus driver”? A PC? Amazing.
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The bus driving was much later in life.
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So that’s a “yes.” Another bit of parallel.
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It is.
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What you’ve learned and what he’s possibly learned, lessons that change people’s lives. Those missteps are needed to find new paths, as I say to remember but be forgiving of yourself.
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Thanks. I did find peace, but hope that the doctor took control of his demons.😊
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If he succeeded, I would hope that it was his family and people who loved and cared about him that received help because they will be forever and ever asking questions of themselves that are unanswerable.
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Absolutely true. My great granddad killed himself, as did Dot’s grandfather, and those unanswerable questions never, ever go away. 😒
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I’m a woman with an overload of pity and empathy, but I’ve none for someone who leaves behind such a mess for those living.
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It is such a selfish and self-centred act but I can empathise with people who get into such a mess that they feel it’s their only way out. Sometimes they think the people they leave behind would be better off without them, although, of course, they never are. I dealt with many suicides as a cop and the stories behind them were often heart rending,
LikeLiked by 1 person
thanks for sharing this, Hobbo: it’s quite a story — and it’s repeated everyday; and you’re right: suicides are desperate; and I’m sure cops,ambos who come across such car wrecks are deeply affected; the last stanza is very powerful —
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, John. Emergency workers do see some awful sights and sometimes, in a quiet moment, they can come back and haunt us. Writing about things definitely helps! 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person