panic at the window

it was mostly overcast here today, but about two hours ago the clouds kind of broke and the skies cleared to make way for a nicely crisp november evening. i went to my bedroom window, to gaze out at the street below, the beautiful church down the block and the light unique to the setting of a november sun. the window is at a perfect height, about chest level, so i will sometimes stand there, elbows on the ledge, looking out, for extended periods of time.

anyway...

this afternoon, something different caught my eye. and what began as a curious figure lurching along the sidewalk became a temporarily alarming incident that actually ties in nicely to yesterday’s blog entry.

as i looked out, i noticed an elderly man walking across the street. he was far enough away that i couldn’t really make out what he looked like (or if he was, in fact, elderly and not just prematurely grey), save for a shock of white hair, a dark trench coat and the bizarre manner in which he was making his way.

it wasn’t quite stumbling, not exactly staggering... it was as if his head and upper body, which were sort of leaned/piked forward, were pulling his resistant lower limbs along at too quick a pace. like his head was going at one speed, and his body was clomping along behind to catch up.

it was odd.

at first, i wondered if he might be drunk. he wasn’t going very quickly, and was kind of wandering in an erratic manner, direction-wise. he’d sort of lurch left, then right, then take a few steps onto someone’s lawn. then i wondered if his gait was simply a result of his age and poor balance... even though the white hair didn’t necessarily mean he was that old and he didn’t have a cane or any kind of mobility aid.

i kept watching, and started to worry that he might fall because he was nearing the part of the street where there’s a slight decline, which would no doubt increase his velocity. he sort of stopped for a moment to look at the signage of a new condo development, and then carried on wobbling, eventually obscured from my view by some houses. i left the window for a moment , then returned to my post a few seconds later and saw the man... who was now visible again.

lying face down in the middle of the sidewalk.

not moving.

at all.

OMG.

my heart started pounding.

i started to whip through what i should do, because there didn't seem to be anybody around near where he fell, nor walking in his direction. should i call 911? scream out the window and hope that a distant passerby on my side of the street might hear me and run over to help? get dressed and run outside myself, even though his proximity meant it would be at least five minutes before i could get to him... and then, i have no cell phone, so what exactly would i do once there?

what to do? what to do? what to do? OMG.

as my brain screamed through options, i kept watching the man, praying he’d somehow get up, dust himself off and be fine. but he was face down, arms at his sides, as though he’d tipped right over. again, he was far enough away that i couldn’t really make out any detail, and i’d missed seeing how he fell.

had he hit his head?

was he bleeding?

was he unconscious?

WHAT DO I DO?????????

i was also psychically willing someone, anyone, to come to his aid. plenty of cars were driving past, but none stopped. unfortunately, when you live in the city, you can become desensitized to the sight of an older man lying on the sidewalk... so it’s possible that drivers didn’t see him or just assumed he was a drunk sleeping it off. there were some pedestrians on my side of the street, but the street is wide and traffic-filled, so they hadn’t noticed him.

as i stood there trying to figure out my course of emergency action – and, btw, the above mental frenzy lasted maybe 10 seconds, tops – i saw a young woman running along the sidewalk towards the man, who was now moving slightly. behind the young woman was a heavier set older lady, who was also hurrying to the man’s aid. then a youngish guy (again, hard to tell exactly how young due to distance) stopped to help the women raise the old man to his feet, and another businessman-type guy pitched in, as well... helping to hold the man up, waiting to see if he was okay. the youngish guy left pretty quickly when it was obvious the situation was under control, but he still gets full points for stopping.

the remaining good samaritans stayed there, checking on the man’s condition and clearly waiting to make sure all was well. when, i guess, it seemed like he was getting his footing again, the two women who’d run to help each took hold of one his arms and started walking him in the direction he’d been going. i have no idea if they knew the man, but i’m inclined to think they did not. they disappeared from view within three or four seconds, and the businessman-type guy headed off in the opposite direction, continuing on his way.

and a huge wave of relief washed over me.

this entire episode took maybe five minutes at most from start (when i first spotted the man) to finish (when i left the window to write this down). but in those seconds where he lay motionless on the sidewalk, my stomach was in my throat and it felt like time stood still.

i’m thrilled everything turned out fine. delighted that strangers stepped up and took care of someone they didn’t know. and pleasantly surprised that you don’t necessarily have to go to the arrivals gate at a busy airport to feel good about humanity.

sometimes, you just need to look out your window.