|
Tom was at home reading when he heard a frantic knock on his door. He looked
through the peephole and saw that it was his neighbor, Mrs Tan, Puzzled, he
opened the door. "Sorry to disturb you, Tom. Can you help me ? My husband has
fallen down and he's too heavy for me to lift him up, " Mrs Tan pleaded.
Without hesitation, Tom went over. When he went into Mrs Tan's house, he was
shocked to see Mr Tan lying face down on his bedroom floor, motionless. He did
not dare to move Mr Tan for fear that he might have any internal injury. He
explained to Mrs Tan that it was more advisable if they called for an ambulance
and had a paramedic check on him.
Within ten minutes, they heard the ambulance siren. Tom ran downstairs to the
void deck to meet the paramedics. He explained the situation to them and led
them to Mrs Tan's apartment. The paramedics gingerly lifted Mr Tan onto a
stretcher and carried him into the ambulance. Tom accompanied Mrs Tan into the
ambulance that took them to the hospital.
The first thing that the doctor at the hospital did was to send Mr Tan for an
X-ray. This was to ensure that there was no
blood clot in the brain. Unfortunately, indeed there was. Mr Tan was immediately
sent for an emergency surgery. The wait was agonizing. Mrs Tan was sobbing and
frantic with worry. Tom tried his best to calm her down. Finally after three
hours, the doctor emerged and reported that the clot was removed and Mr tan was
in stable condition. Tom and Mrs Tan heaved great sighs of relief. It was
another hour later that they were allowed to see Mr Tan. By then, Mr Tan was
conscious but still groggy from the surgery.
That day, Tom remained at the hospital with Mrs Tan. By the time they finally
left the hospital, it was already nightfall. The next day, Tom again accompanied
Mrs Tan tot he hospital. In fact, for the rest of Mr Tan's one-week hospital
stay, Tom tried to be with Mrs Tan whenever he could. the couple was very
grateful to Tom for the help he rendered. |
