Beyond the call of duty
So here is a real story (with a beginning, middle, and end!) about my everyday action - and the actions of others - that made a difference.
As I was walking home from the grocery one hot morning in early September, I noticed that the elderly neighbor next door was sitting in her car, with the door open, not moving. I approached her and she seemed tired but said she was okay. The milk she had just bought was still cold. Thinking that I would offer her privacy, I told her to take care. After I changed clothes inside, I looked out my window and saw that she had not moved. Now I clearly understood that something was wrong. I grabbed a glass of lemonade (I knew she was diabetic), a washcloth, and my cell phone, and went to her car. Only five minutes later, she seemed more lethargic and confused. I knew she was probably suffering low blood sugar. But she also had a history of stroke. Because she was still responsive, I asked if she could take a big sniff, and then asked whether she smelled burning. She looked at me like I was very weird. So knowing that it was probably her diabetes and not a stroke, I gave her some lemonade. With lots of physical effort and encouragement, she got up and we tried to get her inside. But she couldn't step onto the curb. So I laid her down and reached for my phone. Just at that moment, the trash crew arrived. The rest of the story is contained in the attached letter. But the short summary is that my neighbor was indeed sugar-crashing: her blood measured 31 when the EMTs arrived, and only 12 (!) when she arrived at the hospital. But she stabilized quickly at the hospital and was released home by the same afternoon. I think that our neighborhood trash crew are the real heroes of this story, since they helped summon the medical responders so quickly. So I wrote a letter to the City to make sure that their "lollipop leadership" did not go unnoticed. And to make sure the guys knew how grateful our whole neighborhood is, I posted a little message for them the next pickup day.
Oh, a few days ago I gave my neighbor copies of the letters. And I left a few lollipops for her 6-year old grandson who lives with her.
