The Man on the Corner

The B man and I were going out for an evening coffee while the kids were out. We drove by a fellow about our age hanging on to a pole. He looked drunk. We decided to stop and asses this fellow. Thankfully I had a folded chair in the back of the car and we lowered him into it. He was in that delicate state of semi consciousness and would not let us call his family or friends to come help. We called an ambulance. I am glad we did because the paramedics found he was hypothermic. He must have been standing on the corner of that busy street for quite some time.

One of the 2 paramedics was a younger looking guy who was barking out questions to the drunk fellow in a manner that was rude and not effective. There were 2 older police officers on the scene as well. I recognized the approach of the aggressive paramedic. The inexperienced health care worker who knows everything. I was one of those people years ago and realize a lot of us go through that stage. You come out of school knowing everything. After 20 years you realize you don't know much and somewhere in that you find grace and the kind of wisdom they don't teach you about in school. The 3 older paramedics and I looked at each other as the 1 paramedic was dealing with the patient. I felt we were thinking the same thing. The inexperienced paramedic needs a decade or so underneath his belt before he finds the wisdom he lacking at this time.