One Wednesday, many years ago, when I was working as a psychologist (心理医生) at a children's institution in England, a boy showed up in the waiting room. I went out there where he was walking up and down uneasily.

I showed him into my office and pointed to the chair on the other side of my desk. It was in late autumn, and most trees outside the window had lost all their leaves. "Please sit down," I said.

David wore a black rain coat that was buttoned all the way up to his neck. His face was pale, and he stared at his feet while wringing his hands nervously. He lost his father in a car accident 3 years ago. Before he came, his head teacher called and told me, "After his father's death, the boy becomes very sad and depressed. He refuses to talk to others or attend any activities or clubs. He has no social life at all. However, when his father was alive, the boy was active and talkative. After school, they would play chess games happily!"

I looked at David. How could I help him? Perhaps the best thing I can do is to listen openly and to be there for him. But I am still not sure what to do.

David didn't say a word, and only looked at the children's drawings on the wall behind me. As he was about to leave, I put my hand on his shoulder. He didn't step back, but he didn't look at me either. "Come back next week this time, if you like," I said. I hesitated a bit. Then I said, "I know it hurts."

Finally, he came and I took out a set of chess.

Jack went to the swimming pool quite early this morning. He was hoping that there would be another swimmer, but not his tiresome neighbor Mrs. Wilson, who was not popular among teenagers like him. However, when he got to the pool, Mrs. Wilson was the only swimmer there, floating on her back in the deep end.

He waved at her half-heartedly before diving in and doing a few freestyle laps. When he stopped, Mrs. Wilson said, “Great job if you were doing the breaststroke (蛙泳). You have to keep your hands cupped the whole time for the freestyle stroke. And you’re not dropping your head enough to breathe properly. You should see how my grandson Little Tommy swims…”

“Grrr…!” Jack thought. He dived underwater and swam away. After a few strokes, just out of curiosity, he cupped his hands the way Mrs. Wilson had advised. His stroke did seem smoother. He tried lowering his head a bit, which seemed to make him faster.

He swam to the shallow end of the pool. Maybe having Mrs. Wilson around wasn’t so bad. He wondered how she knew so much about swimming techniques. He glanced at where she’d been floating, but she was no longer there. Suddenly he noticed a large, bright mass on the bottom of the pool. He stared at it. Not it—her—Mrs. Wilson. She wasn’t moving! “Oh no!” Jack cried. Mrs. Wilson looked like she was unconscious…or dead!

“Help! Help! A drowning woman!” Jack yelled. He didn’t know whether anyone heard him. It was only a few minutes past six o'clock. Nobody seemed to be awake or outside.

He’d have to rescue Mrs. Wilson himself. Luckily, he’d learned a little about first aid and CPR (心肺复苏术) from a class in Oklahoma. He dived under the water and swam toward her as fast as he could. But when he got closer to her still body, he wasn’t sure what to do. Mrs. Wilson was so large. How could he possibly lift her? Jack wrapped one arm around her neck, paddling up through the water and kicking with all his strength to the top.

Just then he spotted a man in a business suit passing by.

Mrs. Wilson lay still, and Jack kept pressing.

As I walked along the sidewalk in front of Surplus Unlimited, a car that was about to change my life had just turned onto Route 82 from the CVS parking lot. I looked up and noticed the elderly couple in the car heading toward me. As the car rolled past, the driver suddenly collapsed against the steering wheel (方向盘) right in front of my eyes. His wife stared blankly out of the passenger side window. She was unaware that her car was now rolling—without a conscious driver—down the center of a busy road.

I began to jog alongside the moving car. My mind assessed the situation. Somebody needed to stop that car!

I reached forward, but there was nothing to grab. I pounded on her window. She looked confused. “Roll down the window!” I yelled, gesturing wildly. With the window down, I was able to grab the doorframe. I pulled hard against the force of the moving vehicle. On the far side of the car, the traffic streamed by in the opposite direction. Cars passed one after another. Nobody slowed down. Nobody seemed to notice.

Thankfully, the driver’s foot must have slipped off the gas pedal (踏板) when he lost consciousness. I kept pulling, and the car began to slow.

Just then, a woman appeared from behind me. She ran alongside the driver side door. She opened the door and as the car was slowing, she managed to shift it out of “Drive”. A joyful “We did it!” feeling swept over me.

But the car was now stopped in the center lane (车道) with traffic still moving in both directions around us and we need to help this man. Quickly! The woman called 911 while I checked his vital signs. He was not breathing. He had no pulse. He had about five minutes until he was dead. CPR was needed in to time.

Thoughts started running through my mind.

In an instant, the man from the black SUV was standing beside me and said, “I am a doctor.”