ready for an emergency

I studied to become a medic about twenty years ago. Those studies took up two years of reserve duty service, after which I returned to my unit as company medic. I rarely had an opportunity to use the skills I acquired, beyond handing out pills for headaches or for sore throats, or attending to the sanitation of our outposts. Still, I learned to be prepared. I've kept an airway in my bag (still sealed in nylon) since then, on the outside chance that when I'm walking down the street I might suddenly see someone who can't breathe and who needs emergency help. I picture myself quickly whipping out the trusty airway from my bag, putting that person's head back, inserting the airway, and resuscitating him or her.

Of course enough time has passed since I last practiced this activity (and never by actually inserting an airway into a real person) that the chances of my being able to do so successfully, if and when I might encounter someone who might need such help, if dubious. Still, having it in my bag, even if it doesn't instill confidence in the people around me, has become over the years an important part of my own self-image.