“I don’t want to wake up tomorrow morning”
Our pre-patrol training was on suicide prevention and I read the leaflet while waiting to go out on the streets. During the second shift, our attention was directed to a lone young lady sitting on a window ledge. She was hunched over trying to make herself vomit. After using the provided tissue and taking some sips of water, she told me ‘I don’t want to wake up tomorrow morning’. This same phrase was repeated later in the conversation.
“Hmm”, I thought, “…sounds as if I need to put the training into practice”. Remembering what I had read, I concentrated on looking for a reason for her to go on living, while finding out her name, circumstances and current plans. She told me she worked in healthcare and this gave me a good opportunity to emphasise the importance of her role in society, even after she told me ‘If I wasn’t here no-one would miss me for more than a few days’.
Suddenly she seemed to find energy to act and called her friends, from whom she had become separated. They rapidly responded and I was able to help her guide them in. Their car pulled up shortly and the girl rushed across the road and got into the back seat. I just had time to say to the pleasant-looking girl in the passenger seat ‘S has just told me that she is feeling low – please keep an eye out for her.’ ‘Yes, we will’ she replied- and I felt confident that she would.
Earlier, we had heard from a security person of a woman jumping from one of the university buildings just the evening before. I remain challenged to keep ears, heart and spirit alert to the deep distress so prevalent in this world. Praise God for timely words of wisdom. Comment: We are privileged to so often be in just the right place at just the right time. Thankyou Lord for allowing us to be part of showing some of your love and care