Standing in line donning Hawaiian print shirts, sandals, and straw hats, travelers from across the nation waited in line at LAX to board a plane to paradise. The usual noise cluttered the terminal as excitement wafted in the air.
A shriek pierced the noise and a call for help brought the airline check-in stations to a halt. The body of an adult man laid on the ground helplessly as someone yelled for a doctor. An average looking man with a small carry-on rushed to the body. He flung off his jacket, tilted the victims head back and instantaneously begin rescue breathing and CPR.
I watched in horror as the friend of the victim tried stopping his mouth from touching the mouth of the victim, but I couldn’t understand why until I heard, He has AIDS!
The air left the room as the doctor sat on his knees, held a lifeless head in his hands, and questioned if this man’s life was worth his own.
Five years later, I’m still asking the same question.
The doctor took a vow to hold Life sacred. So have I. No, I’m not a medical doctor, but I’m a spiritual caretaker as a lover of Jesus Christ. When rushed to a hospital in dire need of care, no one asks if you’re Christian or Buddhist, gay or straight, legal or illegal. The primary focus is to save life.
As a spiritual EMT, my job is to get people to the Doctor, not ask questions. Why? Because Life is important whether you’re White, Black, Gay, Straight, Asian, Haitian, or not of this nation. I never want to grab my carry-on, put on my jacket, and leave the airport terminal without trying to save a life. Why? Because I don’t want to live with regrets like the doctor on his knees at Los Angeles International Airport five years ago.
Are you emergency medical technician? Do you want to be? If you were the doctor, how would have you responded?
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