Keeping Count

Recently a man in his forties wheeled another guy of about the same age into my office.  The guy in the chair had recently been in a really bad car accident and wanted to know whether or not he had disability coverage on his truck loan.  Side note: I still find it amazing (especially considering that this guy was in such bad shape) that people actually get into a car and drive to the branch to find out something they could easily find out over the phone.  Anyway, as he began to relate to me the severity of his injuries and how lengthy his recovery was going to be (about a year) and how much he thought I'd like to see his x-rays (I declined), I was diligently searching through the system trying to find the aforementioned coverage.  Unfortunately, it turned out that he had not elected to have disability coverage.  Instead, he'd chosen life insurance.  When I informed him of this, he asked me, "Then, in other words, if I die, my truck gets paid off?"  When I responded in the affirmative, he said, "That's the same as with my house."  The he turned to his brother-in-law (the wheeler guy) and said, "I guess I know what I need to do."

He was the second person that week to allude to suicide in my office.  I tried to be as encouraging to him as I could and reminded him that we were only talking about things and that he was important to his family.

I hear so many sad stories, so many tales of misfortune.  I'm absolutely determined to count my blessings, to not lose sight of the good things.  Yeah, the bad stuff is still there.  I'm just going to choose to focus less on it.  I'm keeping count.

A Voice in the Wilderness

Christmas Day at the beach: it just doesn't get any better. We waded, splashed a little, played in the sand, and generally lolled around. I loved it! An incident that day, though, will definitely be etched in my memory.

We were just kind of chilling, relaxing on the sand, when we heard the easily recognizable sound of an engine being gunned. We turned to see a local village idiot doing donuts not too far down the beach from us. I sighed with frustration. My day at the beach was an opportunity to have some time away from the we-couldn't-give-a-flip general attitude in my neighborhood. Now it was being disrupted by this bozo. While I sat there fuming in impotent frustration, a lone woman started walking from nearby us toward the bozo's jeep. I speculated out loud as to what her purpose might be. She just kept walking. A friend was with her, but she allowed her buddy to walk alone. So did all the rest of the beach goers, including myself. The Lone Stranger kept walking. Finally, Bozo noticed, and halted his antics. She stopped in her tracks. When he observed her stopping, he recommenced his inconsiderate behavior. She then proceeded to head straight for him. At first, everyone just continued to stare at her. I guess they were just as speculative as I (and possibly even a little amazed). But she kept on walking. Then, one by one, people started to join her in her walk. None as purposefully, but they joined her nonetheless. And still she walked. By this time she was a little bit of a distance from us, but I continued to watch. Finally, her determination caused Bozo to back down. Slowly he began to back his vehicle off the beach. And still she walked. Then he sped up a bit, and made a less than impressive exit. She stood her ground until she was sure he was really going this time, and then she continued with her stroll down the beach.

I confess, I felt a little disappointed in myself and even a little ashamed. Here I regularly upbraid my neighbors (wholly unknown) for their lackadaisical attitudes towards the general environment and safety of Murray Hill. However, when confronted with an opportunity to take a stand against boorish behavior, I did nothing. It was a definite wake-up call. Like Samson of old, I'll shake myself.