The day was over, and he could go home, he thought happily. He checked his planner for the last time, to make sure that he hadnt left anything incomplete… he also reviewed the decisions he had made that day.. he was a meticulous man, who could coldly analyse facts and figures and arrived upon conclusions based on usually unerring logic.. but wait, he wasnt any inhuman monster, on the contrary, he had the right amount of humanity and compassion in him that made him a just and fair man… almost perfect…
but just as he got out of his office, his happiness vanished, for he saw the rain pouring down, and since the city planners hadnt planned enough, traffic snarls all around… this was the third day in a row that he was having to go through this, and he was irritated..the journey home, that normally took only a half an hour would once again be stretched to almost two hours…as his car waded through the traffic, he fondly remembered the days when he could zoom on this very road..
and as though God had heard him, almost miraculously, the traffic began to clear, and pretty soon, he could indeed go fast.. as he was cruising along, gradually picking up speed, he noticed an old woman quite a distance ahead, standing on the edge of the street, selling flowers to passers by, who, today, were more interested in getting to their respective homes before the next shower hit..he wondered how her life must be, having to go through this day after day, in her old age…
unknown to him, she had two grandchildren to raise.. the children’s parents had died, leaving her to take care of the kids, who had just started going to school.. between what their grandmother earned, and what they got from doing errands after school, they just about managed to survive..their grandmother insisted they go to school, for she knew that was the way out of their current lives.. that was why she went through this day after day…
He was driving quite fast now, and had almost reached her, when a young man suddenly started to cross the road.. his blaring horns seemed to have no effect on him.. he was far too near for the brakes to have any effect, and besides, because of the rain, they would be almost useless.. the median and the traffic on the other side prevented him from making any attempts to his right.. the youngman was in front of him, and the old woman on his left..
in the couple of seconds he had, he actually thought, and made the decision… he groaned inwardly as he heard the wail of the old woman.. even though she was hurt pretty badly, the crowd had seen what had happened, and didnt harangue him, instead helped him carry her to the car… he looked around for the young man, but he seemed to have disappeared…
as the car zoomed away, the young man stepped out of a corner and cursed himself… earlier in the day, he had been diagnosed with a terminal disease.. all he wanted, was to die…..
until next time, who decides and how??
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