The Patch on Your Sleeve

Pride is deeper than the moment.

There will be seasons when your department disappoints you.

When the decisions are short-sighted.
When leadership lacks courage.
When the loudest voices are not the wisest ones.

In those moments, you may be tempted to curse the patch on your shoulder.

To say:

“This place is a joke.”

But look deeper.

Because your department is not a single chief.
It is not the latest policy.
It is not politics or logistics.

Your department is something older.

It is the weathered logbooks in the back room.
The names etched into plaques no one reads.
The calloused hands that built a reputation before you were even born.

It is the weight of tradition that once shaped boys into men.
The quiet expectation that you show up — and show up well.

Administrations rise and fall...
history endures.

That is what you serve.
That is what you represent.

When you speak poorly of your department,
speak carefully.

Because the legacy cannot defend itself.

The generations cannot speak from the grave.

But you are here now.

Honor it — not with blind praise,
but with steady conviction.

Carry its dignity when others forget.

And when the day comes that you wear the bugles,
may you leave it better than you found it.

Not because it is perfect.

But because it is yours.