The Dancer in the Shadows

Friday, October 18, 2013

Smoke Breaks Save Lives

What started as just a smoke break for a couple of my team coworkers was a life-saving event for a complete stranger.  They went outside to enjoy their smokes and chat for a few minutes when they saw someone approaching them very red-faced.  As the stranger got closer, they could see he was also holding his throat and struggling to walk.  One of them knew how to do the Heimlich and did so without hesitation; this dislodged whatever the stranger was choking on and he was able to breath again.

Afterwards, he didn't tell anyone else about it.  It turns out that the stranger was technically also a coworker on a different floor of our building.  I found out about this because the stranger contacted HR to express his thanks since he didn't know what floor my team mate was on.  HR decided that my team mate deserved more than just words, even though he was more than content to simply have helped someone in need.

This is the kind of person I work with, and it is because of working with these people that I'm willing to put up with some of upper management's stupid decisions.  (All upper management makes stupid decisions sometimes... You can't help it when you become disconnected from the real world).

--- The Dancer in the Shadows