Hindsight versus wisdom

http://drjshousecalls.blogspot.com/2009/03/natasha-richardson-medical-blogosphere.html

Dr. J, wise lady that she is, had the perfect combination of wisdom and common sense to answer those people who believed they could have saved Natasha Richardson's life had they been there. The truth is, they weren't.

The most famous shot in NCAA basketball was one made by Christian Latiner (not sure of the spelling of his last name and too lazy to look it up). It wasn't a shot that hadn't been made before by other college kids, high school kids, and even my brother in junior high. It wasn't necessarily the shot itself but the number of people who witnessed the shot and the importance of the shot. Any number of other players could have made that shot but only Christian had that chance. Of all the people who believe that they could have saved Ms. Richardson's life, none had the opportunity.

What they do have is the opportunity to make a difference in the life of someone else. Just like there are thousands of basketball games ever year and millions of points scored, there are millions of opportunities to do some good. The truth is, it isn't making baskets in losing basketball games that kids dream about but making that once in a lifetime shot that wins the biggiest game and brings them a lifetime of glory.

I dare say if that had been one of Greensboro's crack addicted prostitutes who had been mugged and needed that once in a lifetime miracle in order to live, most, if not all, of those who could have saved Ms. Richardson would have just passed on by.

One of the greatest stories ever told was that of the "Good Samaritan" Know what was missing from that story? The name of the hero. He didn't do it for glory. He did it because it was the right thing to do.