Today I did not get to write my Digressions because of a small incident. While I was enjoying an espresso with my wife after lunch just as we were admiring the first signs of long awaited Spring, we heard a commotion outside. It turns out a young woman -- a poetess, we discovered later -- had tripped over tram-rails in the Kinkerstraat. My wife (a surgeon) rushed to the scene and treated the woman's injuries. After she established it was not a dire emergency, she cleaned the wound, and decided that it made sense to send the very discombobulated lady to the hospital for further check-up. Because the young woman seemed dazed (it was her second day in town), I ended up taking her to the Lucas Andreas Hospital and stayed with her until she returned home. Even though it was busy in the emergency room, the treatment was kind and efficient. Most of the medical people spoke flawless English to their patient.
My wife has an uncanny ability to be around when strangers have injuries. But I don't tend to be around when she witnesses accidents; this was the first time I saw her be a good Samaritan in person to a total stranger 'off-duty.' It was impressive to see her take decisive action, calm the patient, and get her environment (a very busy espresso bar) facilitate her care-giving under less than ideal circumstances. Obviously I am a biased bystander, but I am very proud of my wife, who uses her skill and devotion to help unknown people even on her day off. While society's institutions matter a lot (e.g., the young lady was covered by the British NHS, the Dutch hospitals are still -- despite budget cuts -- very good at urgent care), since I know my better half I also believe that small individual acts of kindness and courage can improve our world.
Happy Holidays!
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