Outliers

 Outlier: a mathematical term for something or someone varying from the norm. I believe that outliers are what we notice or are affected by the most in our lives. Especially once you have worked in a particular job or field for an extended period of time, even traumatic events can start to be the baseline, and you go about your job until an outlier blindsides you. For me, domestic violence calls have become my baseline, and I forget the average Joe on the street doesn't openly discuss people being thrown, punched, or attacked without batting an eye. The calls that I remember with the most clarity are the extremely violent, the young, the old, and the most heartbreaking. This call was an outlier.

 The call from dispatch sent us flying to the Emergency Room, where we waited for the ambulance to arrive, and then waited almost an hour for her to be evaluated, treated and have documentation of her injuries. 

  We finally got the call to go back, and I knew it was my turn to lead the interview. As we entered the room, I had a hard time breathing as I saw her injuries. I stood on her right side, and couldn't find the words as I surveyed the havoc her husband had wreaked on her. I cringe even as I describe her injuries. Her husband is clearly left-handed, because the vast majority of her injuries were on her right side. She had bruising over the majority of her right arm, including fist-size bruises. Bear in mind, she had only been beaten about two hours prior, and yet these bruises were so bad they were as developed and black as they would be after a couple of days. The bruising led up her body, followed her jawline, and her lips were covered in dried blood. As we talked with her, she would seize up, her body actually lifting from the bed as her muscles locked up in pain, despite the morphine she was receiving through her IV. She informed us as tears streamed down her face that at one point he had rolled her over and punched her back repeatedly. 

   Even as she endured such all-consuming agony, she defended him up and down. She told us he was a pillar of the community, that he is such a great man, and people have pushed him too far. She refused to give us his name. She even expressed to me that she didn't know how else he should respond to his stressful situations... and I was speechless. Thankfully my partner jumped in and continued, as I tried to process everything.

     

No one, NO ONE, has the right to lose their temper on someone else, not in any form. Not yelling, not name calling, not physically assaulting, not belittling, and not anything like unto it. Nothing that can happen to us entitles us to attack or unleash on someone else. We can and must control our tempers at all costs. We have been blessed with the gift of agency, let us utilize it. Let us be men and women of God, and treat others as such.