It was about 8:30 in the evening when the telephone rang. I didn’t recognize the number but it was local so I answered it. A woman started talking about how we had the same number and she needed to take care of it before she went to bed. She sounded elderly and confused. She told me how she had asked her son to take care of this problem for her and how upset she was, all she wanted to do was go to sleep but couldn’t because of the noise in the garage. She feared someone was in there and maybe she smelled smoke. I tried to calm her down. I could tell she was confused and stressed. I suggested she call the police and she said she had tried but it hadn’t worked. I asked her what her address was and she said she couldn’t remember but she could find out, she put down the phone and I could hear her stumbling around. Then she started crying. It reminded me of how we cry when we are young and scared. I tried to call her back to the phone but she just kept crying so I hung up. I googled her number and found she lived in a neighboring town and then I called the police. I told the dispatcher what had happened and how I was concerned because she was in major distress. The man taking the information was polite and assured me he would have someone go check on her. I didn’t know what else I could do.
I grew up in a time where “you minded your own business” and didn’t “air your dirty laundry in public.” I still haven’t figured out where you draw the line when it comes to helping which can so often been interpreted as interfering. I do know there have been times in my life I wish I had been louder about my concerns for those I cared about. I also know I’ve been told to “mind my own business.”
I don’t know where you draw the line. I do know I thought about this phone call for days and hope she got the help she needs.
The Buzzy Donahue Show 