The Harsh Reality of a Hypothetical Situation

Ya know how, sometimes when you're in a group of friends, or when you're watching something provocative on TV, or when you're thinking really hard about something in particular, you start asking yourself questions?

Like, Is that something I would do?, or How would I react to that?, or I think I would do ____, but given the opportunity to show my true colors, would I really ____?

Well, I just had one of those moments.

Kind of.

Rob and I went to my friend's birthday dinner (the food was vegan, Rob and I have been doing well as ___, and there's too much to cover so I'll leave it at that), and I glanced at my phone. In between hearty laughs and chuckles, I'd missed a call. It was from Rob's house. I listened to the accompanying voicemail. It was Rob's cousin; he said that their grandfather was doing really badly and that Rob had to come home asap (turns out, he didn't even know that Rob was with me, nor did he try calling Rob's cell phone first; his first reaction was to call me).

In a flurry of worry, we called the house and left the restaurant. My high spirits - it had been an awesome day, with very few hang-ups - were immediately dampened. My plans - to bar hop with Opera Singer and hit on sailors - were put on hold. Rob's whole family was at his mom's house, doing what they could to stave off their grandfather's inevitable meeting with his Maker.

When we reached the house, everyone was on the phone. They pummeled me with variations of the same question: Did I know where to get an oxygen tank?

My father's a respiratory therapist, and he takes care of peoples' breathing for a living, so I called him. "Tell them to take him to the ER", was his advice.

But Rob's grandfather refuses to go to another hospital.

My father's second job involves homecare, and I figured that of all of us, he'd be better suited to handle this kind of emergency.

Sensing that my dad was growing weary of me (we had a minor tiff earlier today), I texted him. Could he maybe call his boss from his second job, and try to pull some strings?

I got the text back: No, there was nothing he or his boss could do; it didn't work that way.

Rob was growing impatient. He cursed under his breath at his own futility and at the frustration of the situation. He told me to get home, rest, then have fun with Opera Singer. There was no backhanded anything, no sideways implications, nothing. he honestly just wanted me to do whatever was in my best interest.

As a flurry of phones continued to dial medical supply stores and Rob told me of his fear that his mother and aunt be tried by judge and jury for taking into their own hands the old man's medical well-being, I sat there and winced. I was at a loss. All I knew was that I'd feel too guilty to have fun with Opera Singer while Rob and his family were in such a bind.

Twenty minutes after I went into Rob's mom's house, I left to drive my own mother to work. On my way home, my brother called.

"It's a good thing no one noticed what's in your trunk," he said absentmindedly.

And that's when I remembered: My dad keeps an oxygen tank in the trunk, for his homecare job.

My first impulse was to turn around - but I knew that my dad might get fired for giving the oxygen tank to Rob's grandfather. Also, I knew that I might be under legal duress for that action as well.

My second impulse was to call Rob and tell him about the irony of the situation, but I felt like that would be in poor taste.

So I just laughed at my thoughts and myself and my situation. There was no way I'd be willing to risk so much - my dad's job, possible trial, etc. - in order to (maybe) save Rob's grandfather's life.

If I had the means to save a dying old man's life, but had to risk imprisonment and my father's career, would I?

No, I wouldn't. That's what it boils down to.