Fifty-year-old James shivers each time pellets of rain strikes his exposed skin. He crouches beneath a bridge’s overhang, but it offers no reprieve from the harsh weather.
His body aches when he coughs or tries to take a deep breath. And he doesn’t know how much longer he will have the strength to carry on.
His prayers for food and a warm bed have gone unanswered, and it is far more appealing for him to shut his eyes and go to sleep.
He pulls his old threadbare coat closer to his body with long knobby fingers. But the painful movement leaves him exhausted.
And like his shabby coat, his life appears to hang on by a thread.
Too weak to stand any longer, he collapses onto the ground, and he hears someone gasp.
James lifts his head with great effort as he stares at the stranger who kneels beside him.
“Hello, I am a community nurse. My name is Emma. I will look after you.”
James nods while he is covered with a blanket, and a tear rolls down his cheek.
And the sound of a siren is heard nearby.
No longer forgotten.
His body aches when he coughs or tries to take a deep breath. And he doesn’t know how much longer he will have the strength to carry on.
His prayers for food and a warm bed have gone unanswered, and it is far more appealing for him to shut his eyes and go to sleep.
He pulls his old threadbare coat closer to his body with long knobby fingers. But the painful movement leaves him exhausted.
And like his shabby coat, his life appears to hang on by a thread.
Too weak to stand any longer, he collapses onto the ground, and he hears someone gasp.
James lifts his head with great effort as he stares at the stranger who kneels beside him.
“Hello, I am a community nurse. My name is Emma. I will look after you.”
James nods while he is covered with a blanket, and a tear rolls down his cheek.
And the sound of a siren is heard nearby.
No longer forgotten.
