The other evening I was walking to my car after a long day's studying. I opened the door from the stairwell and entered the parking garage, but after only two steps or so something on the ground caught my eye. It was small, and white, and after only a moment of inspection it was clear that it was a broken bird's egg. I looked up to the ceiling and there, sure enough, behind a concrete rafter, was stashed an empty bird's nest. It was tragic, really, for I imagined the denizens of that nest so excited about their egg, only to have their dreams dashed in a moment of bad luck. They were so distraught, I concluded, that they abandoned home.
The ICU of any hospital contains the sickest of patients, and it is there that fortune can change in a moment's notice. Just yesterday a man of about 50 came in with some nausea and vomiting after a company cookout -- most likely food poisoning of some sort, right? He stayed the night, but the next day stumbled out of his bed and feel. A CT was ordered, and it turned out that the gentlemen had a massive bleed in his head that most likely caused his nausea in the first place. Within and hour or so the man was brain-dead -- there was nothing to be done except transport him to a hospital where he could donate his organs to someone in need. It was so fast. I'll never forget the look of the man's father as he followed the gurney off the floor. He was distraught. Helpless. It was a combination of sadness and loneliness, with a bit of confusion over who was abandoning whom.
I guess things can happen quickly here, no matter what we may do to protect ourselves. And all we can do is react appropriately. One option, for sure, is to abandon home. The other, apparently, is to pick up the pieces as best we can, and perhaps help someone else in the process. The uncertainty of life may be tragic; what we do with it may turn out to be a blessing.
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