猫キャッチャー @minirafan@fedibird.com

You know, there's a mall in Bucha along the Warsaw Highway.

Not far away from my place of living in town.

The mall, along with endless shops, also hosts a clinic, part of a large private healthcare services brand that often accepts war veterans for rehabilitation care.

Amputees. Mostly young dudes.

I often see them having a smoke or just sitting in wheelchairs next to the clinic's entrance, just taking the air and silently looking at people passing by and minding their own business at the mall.

I often see them because I sometimes feed stray dogs that hang around near window shops, waiting for some bleeding heart to buy them a treat.

And every time, there's a new face of a legless soldier looking at the city in front of him.

So the other day, I was walking toward my car parked near the mall.

And I saw yet another disabled veteran in a wheelchair at the clinic's door. A guy in his early twenties, AirPods in his ears, one leg amputated above his knee.

The guy was petting one of my 'sponsee dogs.' He gave the dog a treat, ruffled its head, and wheeled toward the clinic entrance to get back inside.

The automatic sliding door wouldn't open.

He tried again and again, but nope. The sensor wasn't seeing the wheelchair vet.

It was pretty late in the evening, and there were few people around to pay attention.

'Hey, let me do this for you,' I came along.

'I'm afraid they forgot about me and locked the door for the night..." the veteran got a bit shy. 'No worries, I'll try and call somebody who's inside.'

I waved my hand up closer to the sensors, and the sliding door opened up.

Yeah!

The guy gladly wheeled into the shadow of the clinic's entrance.

'Could you please...' he also shyly looked at a hinged door into the lobby.

Sure.

'Oh God, thank you so much for this... Phew!'

No, man, thank YOU for everything.

I mean... I hope on that night, the guy went to bed in his hospital ward without thinking that no one cared about him, never appreciated his battlefield sacrifice, or even failed to take notice of him in the streets.

Who knows how many more of us will have to go to the trenches when it's our turn. Who knows how many more of us will eventually end up alone in a wheelchair trying to get back in.

For those who will see the end of this fucking war in one piece, it's going to be a lifetime duty to be helping disabled vets.

I know I'm being idealistic, but I believe true veteran care begins with a very simple sign of respect by a random dude from a parking lot.