After Christmas, Hearts Grow Cold: A Story of Forgotten People

Today something happened to me that I originally had no intention of sharing with the world, but given the intensity of the situation, I decided to share my experience with you. Hopefully, it can offer a different perspective on what we all take for granted.

I was getting into my car at a shopping centre when a man approached me. He asked if I would be willing to give him some cash so he could buy food. I don’t usually do this, as I have had a few experiences where I gave money to the wrong people. I got out of the car and offered to buy him food instead. He looked at me with gratitude in his eyes and said he would be happy with anything, and we walked together into the shopping centre.

The man had an accent – he wasn’t Czech, although his Czech was impressive. As we walked, we talked, and he told me that he had been hit by a car the previous day. He quickly added that he was fine, but asked if I could buy him something for the pain. I could tell that he didn’t have insurance and that he didn’t seem to have anything serious wrong. I went into a pharmacy, grabbed the first painkillers I saw, and made my way to the checkout.

At the counter, a friendly pharmacist started asking me questions: “Do you have heart problems? Do you have stomach ulcers?” I panicked and automatically answered “No.” She then pulled out some effervescent magnesium tablets and said, “These dissolve in water and are more effective.” I froze. I imagined the poor man trying to find water somewhere to dissolve the magnesium. What we take for granted as normal and accessible is a luxury for others.

I paused, feeling somewhat uneasy, and admitted to the assistant that the tablets weren’t for me. I explained that the man for whom I was buying the medication wouldn’t be able to prepare something like this on his own. She asked who he was and why I was buying the medicine. I explained the circumstances that had brought me to the pharmacy, and I ended up paying for the pain gel as well. The assistant took a deep breath and said she would check on the man.

I was relieved. I can’t imagine what must be going through someone’s mind to refuse to call an ambulance after being hit by a car. On top of everything, the man had dislocated his shoulder and had to pop it back in himself – it must have been excruciating pain.

The assistant accompanied me to the man, who was waiting outside the pharmacy, and motioned for him to come in and sit down. She opened the package I bought, gave him some water, and placed a small painkiller in his hand. He swallowed it without hesitation and thanked us.

We all started talking about the incident. We were curious about how it had happened and what kind of irresponsible driver would leave someone in such a situation. The assistant wanted to call an ambulance, as any normal, responsible person would, but the man refused. He was afraid of the cost due to not having insurance. Shortly after, he admitted that he was having trouble breathing and his chest hurt, so the assistant didn’t ask any further questions and immediately called for help.

The saddest part of his story was when he revealed that the driver who had hit him initially wanted to resolve the situation until he found out the man was homeless. After receiving this information, the driver gave him a 100 crown note (around 5 euros) and drove off.

While waiting for the ambulance, we talked. He asked me my name, and when I told him it was Anna, he started to cry and pulled a rosary out of his chest pocket. He didn’t tell me why, but perhaps my name reminded him of something. I remembered that I had promised him food, and I wasn’t sure how long it had been since he had eaten. I told him I would be right back and went to a bakery around the corner to buy something to eat. I returned with two paper bags, and as I arrived, I noticed that two paramedics were standing outside talking to the assistant.

She immediately pointed to me and told the paramedics that I had found the man in the car park. One of them was very kind, but the other was unpleasant. He asked the man for his ID, and the man explained that he didn’t have any because he was homeless. At that moment, the unpleasant paramedic started verbally attacking him: “Ah, a case for charity! Who do you think is going to pay for this? Do you think we’re a social service?”

Excuse me? What’s going on here? You don’t have insurance, you’re on the street, so we won’t help you? Is this really how things work in the world today? Don’t people have the right to decent treatment, to help, or medical care just because they are homeless and penniless? The man was clearly hurt by this, he didn’t want to go with them, he was afraid to go with them, but eventually, the assistant and I convinced him to go.

I immediately filed that paramedic away in my memory. I had been in the hospital with my daughter once, waiting for treatment after she had an injury. This same paramedic had brought an elderly lady in a wheelchair. The old lady was trying to find her handbag, and he yelled at her across the waiting room: “I picked you up at home, I would have noticed if you had your handbag! Are you completely stupid or what?”

Even my daughter commented on how strange it was for someone who had chosen to dedicate their life to helping others to behave like that. Today, I had the “pleasure” of encountering him again. It’s not that he had a bad day; it’s clear that he hates his job and treats people arrogantly.

I can’t resolve the behaviour of the paramedic here, but I do want to ask something of you. Please, let’s be kind to one another. It doesn’t take much, and any one of us could end up homeless, especially in today’s world. We never know the stories or circumstances of other people. We don’t know what leads them to where they are, or how they ended up there. Many homeless people are, for example, former soldiers who discovered that the system wouldn’t take care of them. Many of them lost their jobs and couldn’t find new ones.

Anything can happen, and fate isn’t always kind. Sometimes, people around us go through incredibly tough times, and we aren’t here to make it harder for them. Of course, some people on the streets drink, take drugs, and don’t want to do anything with their lives, but not everyone is like that! Let’s please be kind! Human hearts don’t need to close with the end of Christmas and the arrival of January. You are not the only person in the world, and you should never behave as if you are. One day, you may be the one who needs a helping hand from a stranger.

-Anna Rajmon