University of Virginia Library

Only Natural

The remainder of the evening proceeded rather quietly. Most
of the conversation revolved around personal interests. By ten
o'clock over coffee, I could not resist asking this man, (a friend it
seemed by then) how he had come to be a police officer? How he
had come to enjoy it so much?

His answer began with an anecdote about a lecture he had
been given at the age of ten – about why a police officer is not a
'cop'.

But it was after this anecdote that he told me: "When I was
working construction, not too long ago, I was making 10,000
dollars a year and only working 10 months. Then one day it
struck me that I wanted to be a cop. And I'll tell you, I see
friends of mine, one in particular who's a doctor, and I know that
there isn't anyway possible that he could be happier than me."

Munching on a Drakes Cake, Jim Bunch continues, "I love
helping people, and when I do, I just feel good. I get rough when
I have to get rough, but I never exceed what the situation
demands. I just like people and I don't believe in using
unnecessary force." As he says this it occurs to me that this man
has got the beat on his life, more so than most people, I think.
Then the conversation drifts into talk of how to treat people,
especially country people, for whom Officer Bunch has a natural
affinity. Which I realize too, is only natural.