FOR the second time, in a period estimated a year or two ago, my eyes fell on a woman hugging a kind of suitcase or some other carrying bag. I was almost certain this was the same person. It was the first assumption I made as I took a photograph and the memories that the group of people who had gathered then pursued. It had taken some time back then even to figure out which agency to call to remove this person that we concluded had lost the basic balance to injure whatever had brought this woman where she was. A guy came up on a bicycle and hailed me, “We doing this again bway?” I recognised him, he was there the first time, and he reminded me that the institution that we should call was the ‘Fire Service’. Again, I couldn’t figure out what they had to do with situations like this. With no credit, I couldn’t call anyone, but when I arrived home, I did so and was answered. We have become like a war-torn nation that has grown accustomed to grief and human misery; the other curiosity is where people who have reached a condition like this can be accommodated.

Incidents like this are an opportunity for me to open up the field of discussion with my children. Where does this take them? I got responses like, “Dad, this is not like your time, people ent got time with other people’s problems, it cold out here, they could deh right deh, if deh ent look after deh self, this time cruel.”

I listened and then I responded that different experiences cause stress. Sometimes, it’s the sudden impact of social changes, when incomes are diminished, family betrayals… we continued for a while. Then the question arose: when you were a teenager, how would you have dealt with that matter? I repeated that there were telephone booths, and if you called the indicated number for a similar emergency, a medical pickup would come, ask some questions, and then take the person to the hospital. They concluded that people were more human back then. Perhaps, I answered, but all the issues you are aware of today occurred then. When it comes to conmen and women, sibling rivalry, and betrayals of trust, people were more emotional then and suffered from that. Today it’s best to have paperwork for everything. Real paperwork can be a reminder, before yuh got to do anybody anything.

I don’t know what happened to the lady in the Avenue of the Republic Canal. Since I hadn’t returned to central town before composing this article, what was surprising was a sudden campaign at home, urging me to sleep earlier to maintain my restful mood. Instead, we had a chat on AI – Artificial Intelligence as a way to lessen literary work. I then reminded them that AI has programmed functions, while humans are complex entities gifted with awareness, cognition, intuition, and emotions in their decision-making. “Where’s the book?” they asked me. “Not yet,” I replied as I made the Academia Letters on Awareness by Federico Bizzarri available to them, insisting that they make their own downloads. Yes, it was fun, and I did feel like having an early night. In the interlude, I’m sure, as parents, we all do.