Tonight's picture was taken in August of 2009. Mattie was at the Lego Store at our local mall. However, he was there after hours when he and his friend were the ONLY ones in the store. Linda (Mattie's child life specialist) arranged for this special surprise. That evening Mattie got to work with two Lego master builders. Together they designed this NYC taxi from scratch. This was NOT created from a kit. Mattie was very proud of this creation, which still sits in our living room today.
Quote of the day: Hope never abandons you, you abandon it. ~ George Weinberg
These two men were not riding side by side, but instead one in front of the other. What I observed is that one of the men literally went from riding his bicycle, to falling off his bicycle within seconds (hitting his head and unable to move). Upon reflection, I honestly do not understand why he fell off his bicycle as no one hit him nor were there any bumps or holes on that portion of the sidewalk. So now I am thinking he had a medical issue that caused him to fall.
In any case, many bystanders approached the fallen cyclist, which triggered his companion in front of him to stop and look back to observe what was going on. What caught my attention was the number of people who stopped to offer help. Not just walkers, joggers, and other cyclists, but people within their cars. Rock Creek Parkway is a major thoroughfare in DC, and cars go zipping by on this road. But two cars stopped (blocked traffic), put their hazard lights on, and jumped out to help. One called 911 and literally both car drivers stayed with this fallen cyclists until an ambulance arrived. Meanwhile, once 911 was called, I walked across the parkway and noticed a woman staring at the commotion. So I told her what happened, as she clearly wasn't sure what was going on.
It turned out that this woman was a medical doctor. She asked me whether her services would be necessary or needed across the street. I said 'definitely.' She literally ran across the street to help, which I think was vital given the fact that this man was moaning in pain, but unable to move. Mind you he hit his head too.
I think what this freak accident did for me today, was it helped to restore my hope for humanity. In so many ways, I feel like I live in a city filled with people who could care less about one another, who only look out for themselves, and are absorbed with rushing around and getting from point A to point B in the fastest way possible. Regardless of who is plowed over to accomplish this goal.
Needless to say my thoughts go out to this man, whose life was clearly transformed after this accident. Yet even now, I still can't get over the incredible show of support this man received and I know if he is making a recovery tonight it is thanks to the handful of people who responded immediately to help. People like this are the heroes in our society.
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