Friday, December 5, 2008

Soft Cranberries

Just about an hour ago, I was waiting for a van next to the Shell station. A red one came towards me, but stopped about 10 meters short. That's not unusual — van drivers often wait around for people or things. What was unusual was that this driver didn't look at anybody, or call out to anybody, or honk, or leave his van. He just sat there. I looked away, and when I looked back again he was yawning in a huge, goofy sort of way. His eyes were moving in directions I didn't think possible. Not wanting to stare, I turned away for another 10 seconds or so. When I looked back, he had started shaking violently. It ramped up and he went rigid, toes to the floor and head to the ceiling, positively quaking across the front seat. I started edging toward him at that point, not knowing what to do. Thankfully, another man and a woman noticed. As the epilectic was going limp and sliding sideways onto the passenger's seat, the male onlooker opened the driver's door and started to move the driver's body. The van slid forward a bit, which was when I opened the passenger's door to jump in and set the parking brake. The other onlooker got to it before I did, then asked me to help pull the driver around to face upward. There was a puddle of frothy spit and a bit of blood on the seat next to his mouth. The onlooker started pulling his legs and I started lifting his shoulders; I navigated my way over the shifter and then feared for a moment that I would drop this man headfirst onto the street. Thankfully, someone from the Shell station came over and gave us a hand. We carried the body — which had ceased its tremors — across the street and almost set it down in the dirt, but then somebody gave us the better idea (which, in retrospect, should have occurred to all of us) of laying him across the back seat. So we did, and as we did, another van stopped behind us. Its driver got out, helped us close the sliding door with the unconscious man's legs inside, and took the wheel. The onlooker rode along in the back.

They went away to the hospital, and I stood there, waiting for a van next to the Shell station.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Wow. That is amazing. It is so great that you were able to help that man. Good job! *HUG* And thank you for the new address. I am still working on the letter! You will get it though... hopefully It will get there before New Years! *HUG again*

Chase said...

I actually felt kind of bad about it, because I just kind of stared at him for a while before doing anything… and then when they rode away in the van, he was on his back instead of on his side, which — when you're foaming at the mouth — can be a choking hazard. I'm still worried about him… I think I'll ask the hospital about him next time I'm in the area.

Anyway, *HUG* back at you. Thanks, as always, for the wonderful letters. I was reading parts of them again just last night.