I'm sitting last night with an elderly neighbor (he just celebrated his 85th birthday🙂), while I'm helping him program the remote controls for all the TVs he has in the apartment.
He was surprised when he called me to ask "When and if I could stop by and help him?", when I answered him: "I'm coming in half an hour, just to have lunch."
And while we were finishing up the pairing of the remotes, we started a story about helping, kind of very close to the theme galenkp chose for this weekend
Helping hand: Have you ever dropped what you're doing to give someone a hand when they needed it most?
Helping another person when you know that you cannot expect him to return it to you, when you need it most.
"How do you experience it and how do you feel?" he asked me.
Yes, I chose to deny myself some rest after returning from work, but I was glad to be able to help an elderly neighbor.
When I finished what he asked me for and called for help, I felt satisfied and fulfilled (a good deed done for the day 🙂), and I was glad that I helped him, because he would never have managed on his own, he would have struggled and would not have found a solution.
He, as if he knew that after a hard day at work, when everything didn't go as planned, I would benefit from praise, because I did something I didn't know how, he called me a "real engineer", which boosted my self-confidence even more (a little more 🙂).
You know the one when grandma calls you a developer, only when you set up WiFi on her phone 🙂
In this neighborly kind of relationship, I know that I cannot expect any physical help from him that he would provide me, so without feeling used or resigned, I calmly accepted in my subconscious mind spending extra time to talk.
But still, this is to help a neighbor I've known for years, how could I even list that as an answer to the topic?
This kind of help is expected, without a second thought.
In response to the topic, I will go back with my memory 15 years ago, when I helped a complete stranger and really extended a hand, when he needed it the most.
We spent the weekend in Szeged, Hungary.
After walking around the city, we decided to visit Szeged Plaza shopping center and buy some clothes for us.
I parked the car in a wide parking lot and as we approached the main entrance, I followed with my eyes two young men who were pushing a large metal cart towards the same entrance, each on one side of which there were large panes of window glass.
You know, it's that thick glass, similar to what was used to make the awards we have in the offices or this to form the offices in the open space areas.
Glass, razor sharp when the edges are not treated and very heavy.
They drove the cart onto the sidewalk and at one point the wheel on one side fell into a small depression.
The cart swayed and the boards on one side of the cart began to lose balance and support on the cart.
The young man on that side of the cart mechanically, with gloves on his hands, started to hold the heavy boards and they, returning to their original position, pinched his fingers of both hands.
They were so heavy that he couldn't pull them out without losing his fingers.
A wail and a frightened voice.
In a few seconds, another young man moved to the opposite side and tried to separate the heavy boards, so that he could pull out his fingers, which were injured. You could see it by the blood that started to drip from the gloves.
Only my partner and I were around at that moment.
Letting go of her hand, I took a few steps to the side of the cart where the two of them were trying to separate the glass panels.
His gloved fingers were thicker than mine and I had space to put the fingers of both hands between the boards, so that his colleague and I could briefly move the boards so that he could get his fingers out.
Thay were Hungarians, I Serb, could not come to an agreement at all, so I said as a command: "Let's go on three. One. Two. Three", and we succeeded.
We moved the panels a few millimeters, he pulled out his injured fingers, and the other guy and I let the glass panels return to their original position.
They didn't break.
My pleasure at having helped someone in need was somewhat dampened when, extending my hand to accept the thanks of the young man whose fingers were not injured, I saw blood dripping from my palm. Fuck!
As I removed my fingers, I cut myself on a sharp edge.
My partner scolded me for not being more careful, when I "had" to run over and help, but whatever happened, happened.
While the two of them went to their car, probably to drive to some ambulance, I went to my car, unpacked the first aid kit and bandaged the cut palm.
I literally gave my hand to someone who needed it the most at that moment 🙂
My injury, although at first glance inconvenient, was not dangerous and terrible, the wound was not deep and the bleeding soon stopped.
But if I hadn't been nearby and reacted impulsively to help, maybe that young man would have lost his fingers?
The palm injury and the bandage that I clumsily put on did not prevent me from continuing my walk around the shopping center, the only thing is that I bought the wardrobe "on sight", without trying it on, because there was no way to put my wrapped hand through the sleeves of shirts, jackets and hoodies.
Now, when I remember that event because of this topic, I still feel satisfaction and pride, that I helped another human being, but also, I know that the next time, in a similar situation, I would stop for half a second and allow my brain to process the thought:
"Take something and protect the hand, which you want to push into the fire for someone else".
Great story and great message, helping others is something that makes us better humans. Nice to read you🙌
I'm glad you liked my story 🙂
Helping people in need makes us real heroes, and as for helping the elderly, I like to say, we collect loans, so that in our old age we can hope that someone will help us too.
If I don't respect my elders today, how can I expect someone to respect me tomorrow?