Letter: Show some compassion

EDITOR,
Phil Johnson’s letter (“Thought-provoking death,” April 6) should be thought provoking for all of us.
I was in a similar situation once and saw someone who was propped against a tree; things just didn’t look right. Quite a few people went by and made comments such as, “Look at that bum; sleeping it off” or “Doesn’t that guy have any pride?”
Not one person thought to check to see what was going on. The man was dead and had been for quite some time. I felt so badly that he died alone, that no one knew or cared about him. It wasn’t as if you could miss him. I thought of this person many times over the years.
Two homeless people in Boulder Creek also died alone, people I knew (although not well); but it was the way they died — one curled up in the hollow of a tree he called home, the other face down in a creek (he had seizures). If anyone saw them, no one cared to see if they were OK.
None of us know the background of any of these people, but surely we can show some compassion for them.
As Mr. Johnson said: “Life is precious. There, but for the grace of God, go I.”
Ronaele Findley, Boulder Creek