precious medals

I worked a different kind of police shift today. I volunteered to help out at the Special Olympics. I thought I was going to spend the day manning a recruiting booth or handing out stickers or something like that. Instead I found myself spending almost all of the day giving medals to the athletes. I'm next to actors and real olympic medal winners and other athletes, and people are coming up to me saying "I have a request for you to give this person their medal". And these kids aren't shy! From the girl who blurts out "I have a crush on you" as I place the medal on her, to the other who says "Thank you, Baby!" as I give her hers, to my friend Anna pictured here who insisted I take a picture with her to send her after giving her her medal. With my camera. Talk about an ego boost.

If you ever want to see true heart, go to a Special Olympics. These kids (average age of 30!) compete with everything they've got, are thrilled to be fifth place (much less first), and are so happy and thankful to everyone they meet. Smiles and smiles and smiles. for days. I wish I could be as good a soul as each of them is. They zap you of all your energy, but its worth every bit of it. This was rewarding work.