Life Apathetic

I saw an awful and gruesome accident about a year ago.  Well, actually I just heard the accident from about a block away, but quickly rushed over to the scene.  It was a Sunday night around midnight and the Eagles had been playing a big game earlier in the evening.  The driver of the car was wearing an Eagles jersey, so I assume he had been watching the game and drinking.  Who knows. 

But, it was clear to see the skid marks of his car across the street.  It looked like he was in the wrong lane, not paying attention, and then swerved to avoid an oncoming car.  Now out of control, his car hit a parked car so hard that it, in turn, hit a truck in a driveway.  The Eagle’s fan’s car continued into a telephone pole and wrapped the hood around it like tin foil.  He must have been going about 50mph on this small neighborhood street. 

I was just getting home a block away when I heard the screech and slams.  It sounded bad, and arriving at the scene, it looked worse.  However, when I arrived, the driver was standing on the sidewalk. A few neighbors were outside buzzing.  The panic was about the female passenger.  She must not have been wearing a seatbelt because as I walked around the car, I could see that she was crumpled down into the foot-room space of the passenger seat.  Covered in blood.  I’ve never seen so much blood.  It looked like an over-the-top Hollywood horror movie. She wasn’t moving at all and her body was in such a contorted shape, that I couldn’t imagine anyone not at least trying to shift their position if they were alive.  “I’ve never seen a dead body before,” I thought.

I’d taken a First Aid class years ago, but the only thing I could think of was to say, “Someone needs to take her pulse.”  That’s it.  People were already on the phone with 911 operators and I figured it would be important for them to know if there was a pulse.  But, it wasn’t going to be me!  I think I didn’t step forward to take her pulse primarily because of all the blood that I didn’t want to touch.  But, reflecting on it now, I’m not sure I cared if she lived or died.  Isn’t that awful?  Is it?  Superheroes are always rescuing the bus full of innocents from plunging over the cliff, and Jesus came to save even the prostitutes and low-lifes, but I didn’t do much more than half-heartedly delegate.  I even went as far as to assume that she must not have had her seatbelt on because she was leaning across the car in the drivers lap!
(She did eventually come to before the paramedics arrived, although I have no idea if she survived her injuries after that).

I was walking into a large apartment building this morning and in my peripheral vision, I thought I saw someone standing on the edge of the roof!  When I actually looked, there was nothing there.  For a second though, I thought about if there actually had been someone up there about to jump, and I’m not sure I would’ve yelled out to them to try to convince them not to jump!  Is that awful?  It’s not that I’d want to see a gruesome death by any means!  No, not at all.  But, what do I know about this person?  They obviously believe that life is not worth living anymore for whatever reason.  Am I allowed to think ‘the world might be a better place without them’? Am I condoning suicide by not trying to stop them from jumping?  People die everyday, I’m not a psychologist, and I believe God has a plan.  The Catholic argument is that suicide is taking ‘God’s plan’ into your own hands, and is a mortal sin.  I think there’s something about not letting your Brothers and Sisters fall into sin as well.  Am I not allowed to just let it happen?  Let the girl in the car accident die if she’s going to die.  Let the person jump if he’s going to jump.  This is out of my control, but Omnipotent God saw both coming.  Is this getting close to a Buddhist thought of ‘going with the flow’?

Is there something wrong here?  It sounds horribly apathetic towards the value of life, doesn’t it?  Don’t get me wrong- if there was some type of violent crime happening, I would try to break it up as best I could.  But I also coldly acknowledge that death is a part of life and it’s going happen sooner or later.

If I was in a brutal car accident, would I want someone to help take my pulse?

Does the guy about to jump off a building actually hope that someone will finally reach out to him in his hour of need and convince him that life is beautiful?

How does this relate to my views on abortion?  Or doesn’t it?  I am a ‘Pro-Choice’ Catholic (if I’m allowed to have both, which I’m not sure I am).  Could it be argued that abortion is a ‘violent crime’ that I promised I would try to break up as best I could?  Could it be argued that the tiny life in an uninterested mother’s womb is just the same as a bloody car accident?  Steps need to be taken to end the life, but my apathy kicks in again thinking, "people die every day", "what do I know about this woman and fetus?", and ultimately "God has a plan."...