A cry for help

One thing about driving a taxi is that it gives you a chance to think between jobs.
What would it be like if I won the lotto?
What will I do next when I have to give up the taxi business?
Will it rain today?
Whats going to happen next?

All big things to ponder on, but here is a situation that no one should find themselves in.

She got into the taxi with a washed out expression, she had reached the wall of exhaustion and now was on autopilot.
She gave me an address and an area. I told her I didn't know the street, she said it was OK.
50 yards was all we covered when she started talking.

Some people talk to be sociable.

But this was an escape of emotion fear and grief.
You may know that we have had a spate of murder suicides lately.
Really horrific killings. No I don't know why it is happening now, but perhaps it is all the doom and gloom going on with no end in sight. Plus the fact that those people who caused this avalanche of finances have not been brought to justice, nor will they because our elected representatives have their dirty hands in the till.

"I am so tired I could sleep for a month"

She went on to ask me if I had heard of that shooting in the midlands where the man shot the girl and then shot himself?
"Well he did that in my car"

She took me through the whole situation and "then when he didn't come back to the house I walked down to where he said he was going. I saw the car and walked up to it, I knocked on the window, I thought he had fallen asleep, then I opened the door and he flopped over, I knew he was dead straight away, he had shot himself.
I found out later that he had shot his girl as well"

So all the screaming for help and the police arriving, she was suspect number one for the murder. Her phone was taken away to study her calls. After a few sessions of questions she was set free, without phone or car.
She managed to arrange a session with a therapist and after 10 minutes the police came banging on the door for another session with them in the Garda station.
If she had money the Garda would have to produce a warrent, they couldn't just badger her like they were doing.
The poor woman was a wreck !

She happened to mention to one of her kids that she would have to get another car.
"You needn't ask us for any money" was the answer she got.
She let rip with her tongue.
"All the things I have done for you lot and when I was stranded down there none of you thought that I might have needed someone to get me cigarettes or a bottle of lemonade.
I have done a really bad job on rearing you lot"

Whe we arrived close to her road she drew a blank.
"I can't believe it. I can't remember where I live"
Now I can understand that perfectly well. So I pulled over and opened the windowas and asked her to close her eyes and count slowly up to 10. Sure enough her head had re booted and we finished our journey €12 on the meter. "Just give me €10" I said.
I knew by her face that that was the first bit of kindness she had recieved for a few days.