He walks up to her, in dire need of medical attention. She, a young mother, is already feeling overwhelmed. But after she reaches out to this person in need, there is no turning back.
My friend’s street is so traumatically narrow and steep that drivers, upon discovering it’s a dead end, have to back down the hill because there’s no place to turn around. I know because that happened to me once, which is why I walked here today.
I see a man approaching, and I think, Oh, great. Now what?
“Por favor. Call 911,” the man says. “Finger. Cut.” He holds up his blood streaked forearm. With his left hand, he is clenching a wad of handkerchiefs around his right pinkie.
“No. Have. Phone,” I say, as if English is also my second language.
“Have phone,” he says, and dips his chin toward his front pants pocket. I don’t want to stick my hand in there, but the blood does look real. In his pocket, I find a flip phone. I slip it out and step back out of arm’s reach, then call 911.
The operator answers, and after I give her the address, I say, “I’m here with this guy, and he says he cut his finger.”
“Is it bad?” the operator asks.
“Is it bad?” I ask him.
“Sí.” “It’s bad,” I tell her. “Did he cut it off?” Now, there’s a question I hadn’t thought of. “Did you cut it off?”
“Sí.” He sighs, relieved someone finally understands the gravity of his situation.
“Yes. He cut it off.”
Denne historien er fra May 2018-utgaven av Reader's Digest US.
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Denne historien er fra May 2018-utgaven av Reader's Digest US.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Election Day Memories - Stories about voting by the people, for the people
A Convincing Argument When my boyfriend and I were finally old enough to vote in our first presidential election, we spent months debating with one another about our chosen candidates. We were quite persuasive, as we discovered when we got home from the polls and learned that we'd both voted for the other's initial choice.―SHERRY FOX Appleton, WI
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