About 22 years ago I was walking up a woods road back to my truck for lunch when an obviously agitated young woman in an SUV pulled up and asked me if I had a cell phone. There was a bag phone* in my truck so jumped in so she could give me a ride. As we rode she explained that she and her father had driven up that AM to do some hiking... not realizing we'd had a major ice storm the night before. He had slipped and fallen about 100 feet to the river and was in bad shape.
Pre 911 so when we go to my truck I called #77, explained the situation and handed the phone to her. I heard everything she said so after hanging up she said she was going back to him, and I went to a nearby logging operation in an unsuccessful bid to get help.
I then followed her back in.
When I got there she said "He's gone!" I could tell at a glance anyways, as he had stopped bleeding. His eyes are what I have always remembered though; wide open, staring at nothing.
At the time I worked alone; if something had gone wrong, it would have been a long time before anybody missed me. For a long time after that if I started to do something a bit risky a vision of those eyes would appear; I would stop and find a better way... habits which last until this day.
*AKA: A phone that worked.
Pre 911 so when we go to my truck I called #77, explained the situation and handed the phone to her. I heard everything she said so after hanging up she said she was going back to him, and I went to a nearby logging operation in an unsuccessful bid to get help.
I then followed her back in.
When I got there she said "He's gone!" I could tell at a glance anyways, as he had stopped bleeding. His eyes are what I have always remembered though; wide open, staring at nothing.
At the time I worked alone; if something had gone wrong, it would have been a long time before anybody missed me. For a long time after that if I started to do something a bit risky a vision of those eyes would appear; I would stop and find a better way... habits which last until this day.
*AKA: A phone that worked.