A completely unexpected blog: A moment of compassion in a harsh world

 

By Mary Kay Roth

After a stunning sunrise at the lake this morning, I was walking back to the parking lot with my two walking buddies – Bethany and Anne – when my dog, Pip, started fiercely pulling on the leash and looking back toward the dam. We saw that Pip was gazing into the distance, watching a woman cautiously inch her way down the steep, paved path along the side of the dam.

She was dressed in a long, beautiful saree, but it had been raining and the path was slippery. Suddenly she stumbled and sort of somersaulted down at least half of the pathway.  

She landed hard. And she was still. 

We all went running.

By the time we reached the path, the woman was grasping at bloody and already swelling knees. We gently approached and started asking questions, but quickly discovered she couldn’t speak English.

She was terrified and said very little, but quietly cried and simply rocked back and forth in pain.

Bethany went running for a first-aid kit from her car while Anne sat down beside the woman and embraced her.

The woman started to pray and we prayed with her. We kept telling her we were there to help and tried showing her how to breathe.  She was sobbing in obvious distress but watched us and tried to calm.

We shared our names and she spoke for the first time.  Her name was Sujata.  

She told us the language she spoke and upon googling, we puzzled out that she was from India.

A dog walker along the path noticed us and asked what happened, then explained she was a nurse practitioner.  She looked over the woman, gingerly, checking on the painful areas.  She suggested she call an ambulance – and did.  She warmly wished us good luck and headed on.

The four of us all started to hold hands and we tried to tell the woman help was coming. We formed our hands in prayer together.

A lovely quiet surrounded us all.  And despite the trauma of the moment, it was somehow impossible not to pause in wonder.  We had no language to share, but here were four women in a circle of care and support.  

“Even though we didn’t speak the same language,” Anne said, “we all understood compassion, love and caring.”

Ever so subtly we started hearing sirens in the distance and knew help was coming.  We squeezed Sujata’s hands, told her to hold on.

And just as the fire truck and ambulance pulled up. the woman’s grown son came running.

His name was Shrikanth and he has lived here a decade. His mother only arrived this week.  

Apparently they had gone for a walk but his mom wanted to take a short jaunt on her own.   Just a short one.   Then she had vanished and her son had been searching for her.

The emergency folks immediately went to work and did a quick examination.  They managed to lift Sujata onto a stretcher and move her toward the ambulance.

Gratefully her son could translate.

And though the woman was incredibly frightened, she continued to hold our hands until the very last moment – speaking perhaps the only English words she knew.

“Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.” 

“Oh, thank you, thank you.” 

Bethany gave her son directions to the hospital.  We all hugged the woman one last time and by then we were all crying.

The ambulance pulled away.  My friends and I were alone again.

We talked about concern over all the red tape and barriers they will face.  I fear she has a broken leg. Bethany got the son’s phone number so we will be checking.

But we also held one another this morning in deep gratitude.

For a dog with super powers.

For a nurse practitioner who stopped to help.

For great medical responders in our community.

For three women being at the right place at the right time.

You know, I was going to write a blog today, ranting again about Trump and all his continuing and despicable actions.

But I’m left with a dramatically different feeling this special morning.

Our hateful president can hand down all the executive orders he wants.  He can impose initiatives that result in cruelty and harm.

But he can’t stop three women from stopping to help another woman in trouble.  

He can’t stop us from holding hands and hugging.  

If we’re willing to pay attention. If we’re willing to respond when the moment calls to us.

Nothing can stop us from caring for one another. Nothing can stop basic human compassion.

We’re praying for you, Sujata.