When I was two, I put rocks in my mouth because they were cold. How in the hell did I raise such a brainiac?

   Motivation is the reason I’m writing this. I have recently been motivated by this blog to be better. Both physically and spiritually. I had a great talk with an old friend over dinner the other night. We discussed what his purpose was for creating this site. I told him that its mere existence was motivating me. Pushing me into writing. Giving me a medium which to hopefully help others see things from my perspective, but also inspire me to strive to be a better person.

     I have a (nearly) two year old daughter. She’s my first and only. I love her dearly. However, sometimes I am pushed to the brink of frustration where I want nothing more than to be in a quiet place with a cold beer. Parenting toddlers is difficult. Add a relationship and career into that mix, and the struggle is real. Real, but also really rewarding. Every day I am floored by the things my daughter says and does. She’s not even two and knows her ABC’s and can count to 10. She can tell you who every Disney princess is, and can even sing some of their songs. When I was two, I put rocks in my mouth because they were cold. How in the hell did I raise such a brainiac? Will she always be that way? Am I messing her up along the way? Or helping? How much do I help? All of these are things that first time parents assuredly will deal with. But how do you stay motivated? For me, I do everything I can. I sing Frozen songs. I talk endlessly about how beautiful the princesses’ dresses are. I snuggle and tickle and act as silly as possible. Because I have a blast? Absolutely. Because my daughter loves it? Even more so. I am motivated to make sure she has the best memories she can of her Daddy. Being silly, being there. Why? Now here’s the messed up reason. Because I’m not sure if I always will be there. I’m in a profession that is constantly under fire. Literally.

28 Officers have been killed by gunfire nationally since the 1st of the year. No reason. Just because. Granted I don’t work in a large metropolitan area, but who knows. Maybe, without any fault or lack of tactics, I will become a statistic. Do I want my daughter to remember a stressed out, tired, frustrated daddy? Or one that was always there, and an absolute blast? I’ll take the latter. That’s my motivation. That’s why I want to stay invested in my health, my family, my overall well-being. That’s why I’m going to start contributing to this blog. To help me stay motivated, and hopefully keep others doing the same. Keep fighting the good fight, at both work and home. Keep being a contributor in this messed up crazy world. Hopefully I can help at least a few others by sharing my experiences. Both the good and the bad. So…more to come from me. Stay tuned. And in the meantime, God bless all those fighting the good fight. -B.

Brad has been married for 6 years and has a 2 year old daughter. He is a Police Officer in a suburb of Chicago and is currently a Patrol Sergeant on the Midnight shift. He is a cyclist and runner, sometimes.