How well do you know your neighbor?

It has been a lovely day.  I ran 12 miles with a dear friend and a new friend.  I took Jackson to the Zoo and had decided to lay down for a little nap. Yes, a nap. I am on vacay and felt that taking a little siesta while he napped was totally appropriate.

Before I laid down, I grabbed my laptop and sat on the sofa to make sure a few last minute details were cleared up for year end for work.  From the other side of our family room wall, I heard what sounded like an alarm.

Ruth is our neighbor.  She is very old. Last year, she broke her hip and lately we have seen her son around and we had been thinking maybe her health has been bad again.

We don't see her much. In fact, when we moved in, it was well over 3 months before we saw her for the first time.  She asked us if her TV bothers us (we live in a condo development so our walls connect). She doesn't hear well and she was afraid it was too loud.  We told her that we could never hear it but in fact, there are many days when you can hear her TV going.  Not a big deal.

Back to today.  So, I chalked the alarm sound up to her TV. I went upstairs to lay down. Just as I drifted off to sleep I heard the wail of the Fire Engine. My eyes popped open and all I could think was that I just let my neighbor die without even checking on her. Seriously. I am a jerk.

I ran outside to find emergency responders trying to decide whether or not to break down the door. My neighbors from the other side had also rushed over. Apparently Ruth's life alert button had been pressed and had prompted EMS to show.

After several minutes of looking through windows and literally seconds before they were getting ready to break down the door (yes, think BIG axe), her sister arrived to tell us that Ruth was at the beauty shop and her button must have malfunctioned.  Wow.  Thank goodness she is okay.

So now I wonder, how well do I know my neighbors and will I react differently next time? We would all like to think that we'd be there to help but would we really? Now that I know she wears the life alert necklace then I think I will be more likely to handle things differently next time.  I also think that I will stop by later, offer cookies, and maybe ask for a key to her house.  She is old and she might need a little extra attention and why wouldn't we give that to her?  After all, she is my neighbor...