Standoff

As I type this, I can hear the rumble of helicopters above my house. A strange distant sound that seeps through my windows is a reminder of the reality of the world in which we live. See...just a few miles away on the Walt Whitman Bridge, a man is in a standoff with police. What began as an high-speed state police chase has ended with a hostage situation. According to reports, the man has a child and woman in the car with him - and a large Rottweiler who didn't garner mention in the news coverage, but could clearly be seen sticking his head out of an open window in the footage. It's now 7:02 and the standoff has been going on since just after 5pm.

It makes me wonder about the sadness that must be prevalent in some people's lives. My life is NOT perfect. No where near. But...I'm happy. I could never consider hurting myself at this stage in my life - nor could I knowingly hurt someone else. I can only imagine what could lead someone to find themselves in the middle of a bridge...seriously contemplating what this man is contemplating.

UPDATE - My brother-in-law was called into work early - he's a police officer for one of the departments involved in the activity on the bridge. The standoff ended around 8:30pm with the man being taken into police custody. No injuries, thank goodness. I'm sure we'll hear more details on the 10 o'clock news...at this point, I just hope for a sense of peace for those involved - on all levels.