“A human being is part of the whole, called by us ‘universe,’ a part limited in time and space. He experiences his thoughts and feelings as something separate from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal decisions and to affection for a few persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”
Albert Einstein
The experience of interconnected consciousness has been held as significant for thousands of years, yet it is not accepted as a mutually agreed upon reality. Because of irresolvable personal, religious, and intellectual conflicts—stemming from deeply held convictions about the makeup of life—we have only gradually developed ways of exploring the truth of our innermost nature.
This book is a creative compilation of unusual, moving, and exceptional moments experienced by police officers in their daily work. These moments imply we are interconnected. Law enforcement officers represent a small portion of our world population, but like other groups and professional families, they are sometimes regarded negatively as separate, apart, robotic, authoritarian, ego-maniacs, etc.—I could come up with many more adjectives that are pejorative.
I suggest that police officers are not separate from you. Police officers are human beings who, consciously or unconsciously, choose to serve people for the common good. Hence, this heartfelt collection of true stories is an attempt to help untangle some of the illusory misconceptions and boundaries that have been created between police officers and the general public.
I believe that our goal as a human race is to share a greater sense of belonging together and to realize that we are all interrelated. If we are able to heighten our sense of connection to a larger whole, then a new level of shared intelligence, respect, compassion, and creativity will begin to emerge among everyone.
May we all contribute to the common goal of oneness in some small way. Thank you to all my fellow police associates and friends who entrusted me with their remarkable stories.
In heartfelt gratitude,
Ingrid