The Drive

What is it that makes us go
Makes us push for that last lap
That last rep…

What is it that makes us go
Makes us push past our comfort zones,
Past our need dominate

Was it something in your past?
Was it something that burrowed itself
Deep inside?

I’ve seen war as a child,
I’ve seen pain as a child,
I’ve seen the destruction man can inflict
upon each other at such a young age.

Artillery raining on a mountain side
A soldier blown up
by a grenade on the ground

Is that what created this lion inside?
Is that what gave me the drive?
Is that what gave me my will and resolve?

It’s a combination of it all
It’s the will and resolve
It’s the drive It’s the Lion inside
that continuously stalks its prey.

As a man,
I’ve taken all my pain, anger, rage
and formed it into an unstoppable power.

I’ve taken my guilt,
my sadness, my hate
and used it to fuel my resolve.

It’s that drive that makes us push that extra mile.
It’s that drive that helps us save lives.
It’s that drive to protect.

The drive is deep inside you.
Dig deep and find it.

__________________________

This first appeared in The Havok Journal on April 19, 2021.

Ayman is an Army Veteran who was deployed during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005 and became a police officer in 2007 after 8 years of military service. He has worked in the patrol division, in a plainclothes anti-crime unit, as a Metro-SWAT operator, and as a detective in a major crimes unit, as a narcotics task force detective with the DEA, and as an operator with the DEA Special Response Team (SRT). He also helped organize SRT operations in Southern New England.

As an assistant team leader, he assisted and coordinated the planning of operations as well as conducted various aspects of training. He has investigated high-level drug traffickers, gang members, and conducted numerous operations. He is currently the Officer in Charge of the Problem-Oriented Policing Unit. Ayman is a law enforcement firearms instructor, a less-than-lethal weapons instructor, a certified use of force instructor at his police department Ayman’s hands-on experience with law enforcement operations at many different levels coupled with his compassion to save lives has brought him to coordinate “Project Sapient.”

This initiative is a joint effort comprised of law enforcement professionals of all levels combined with the Special Forces philosophy of winning hearts and minds. Ayman has found that to reach more officers and departments, it is important to share his experience with media outlets that reach law enforcement.

He regularly contributes to The Havok Journal, writing articles that provide insight into current law enforcement trends and methodologies to help officers become better equipped to handle an ever-changing work environment.

Project Sapient is currently a Podcast. Ayman’s vision of Project Sapient is to eventually train other law enforcement officers and civilians alike in stress inoculation. Something that is sorely needed in the Law Enforcement profession. In his writing, Ayman draws from his hands-on experience as both a law enforcement professional and his military service.

For years, Ayman has seen the trend in lack of training policing. Whether it’s budget cuts, political enemies, or ineffective policy, Ayman has made it his mission to bring innovation, unconventional policing methods, and to have those tough conversations and instruction to assist law enforcement to better relate with and advise communities.

He sees firsthand the need for better training and tools for law enforcement to serve their communities most effectively. A better-trained officer is what policing a free society requires.