The Awful
Things I Must See
Patrolling the
streets on the west side of town
The radio is busy
dispatching a fairly normal sound
My thoughts were
on Christmas, only a few weeks away
The gifts I needed
to buy before the big day
Suddenly my
thoughts of Christmas were shut completely down
By a radio call on
my side of town
I could hear it in
the dispatchers tone
The call was bad
from what was known
An auto accident
on a stretch of road
A tanker truck
about to explode
Two cars involved,
passengers thrown around
As I arrived I saw
bodies on the ground
A quick assessment
of the dreadful scene
Four dead bodies,
they appeared to be teens
My gut is
wrenching at what I see
Childrens
lifeless bodies lying among the debris
Please God, let
this be a dream
But this time no
answer I want to scream
That smell, so
familiar, surely alcohol
I already know it
is responsible for this all
Determine what did
happen sift through this mess
The next task I
have I really do detest
Notifying parents
that their child is dead
No matter what
words I choose, it is every parents dread
Alone in my patrol
car once again, the radio is calm for now
The tragedy Ive
witnessed tonight, my memory cant disavow
Young lives ended
so much is lost
If only that
center line they had not crossed
I hope I never
have to see another scene
Involving injury
or death to another teen
I know my hope is
not likely to be
So God guide me
through the awful things I must see
ŠKent Fletcher
November 23, 2007
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kent Fletcher retired as Deputy Chief of the Durham NC
Police Dept. He served with that department for 301/2 years. He is a graduate
of the 162nd session of the FBI National Academy and has an AA and BS degree in
Justice Administration from Guilford College. Writing short stories and poetry
has become a part-time hobby. He ca be reached at
hkfletcher@nc.rr.com
