11/1/10 Getting involved, and what goes around comes around

Sometimes you need to warn perfect strangers, you need to tell them about a risk they are running, so that they take care of themselves. Sometimes you need to be a little rude or abrupt or diplomatic or gentle. Sometimes you have to make a noise in front of someone's face, to help them snap out of their little stupor, so they will pay attention and take care of a situation.
I had an opportunity to do that 2 years ago but I didn't. Not my fault, really. I wasn't under any obligation to be a nursemaid. No one could fault me for not getting involved. But the guy died of a heart attack, and I could have recognized what his symptoms meant if .... if... (and I don't blame myself, either, but I just kept thinking if it happened again, I know what I'd do).
It happened again. I met a guy who has symptoms of toxicity, probably from fish he eats from a toxic waterway. I not only told him in person and on the phone, but wrote him a note describing how to get help. There. I've done my job. In a way it feels like the karmic wheel came around to me again. I got to re-make a decision. I got involved. And now the follow-up is up to him.