Death in the Neighborhood
Neighbor had a heart attack. 50s.
CPR didn't work.
Taken to hospital. Too late.
He was a good man. Had had a check up recently for other reasons. Nothing definingly problematic on paper. Yet now he was no more.
There are two parts to this. One part is about the person's own responsibility towards his health. Another is everyone else's responsibility towards the person.
There is certainly more to life than can be put on paper or measured via instruments. But when someone gets a heart attack, the first part's role is over.
What was done in the second part today, happened with about 70% accuracy compared to what a professional medical team might've achieved.
But that 30%. I didn't hear a lot of people talk about it.
Because death is usually shunned, there is a weird conflation in the social psyche when it is confronted. Be it their own or someone else's. About 2 persons die every second on the planet. Yet it isn't until someone around us passes away that we realize that death isn't a statistic nor is it really predictable. Events such as these are a reminder of our own mortality, the value of our feeble life. And that of those we dearly love and must promise to take care of.
Few lessons:
- Modern medical science isn't a strategy for health but a science of treatment.
- Death is real. Better know that today than when it strikes on the door.
- Be prepared for emergencies. With regards to oneself or someone else.
- Keep a very keen eye on what education or culture might be overlooking.