'The Red Cross? ...a volunteer?'

'That might just be my ticket out of here. ...Maybe I could volunteer to fly out to troubled places and help people.'

These were Elizabeth's first thoughts when she opened the notelet from her mother-in-law. She sat on a warm wooden bench outside the St. James Hospital and read the content of the note quickly and without emotion. It was pleasant, but she wasn't pleased and didn't feel herself moved, a brief thought of 'I wonder what is wrong with me,' crossed her mind..

She found herself instead moved by the image on the card.

The picture showed a young man dressed in a red cross hat and apron embracing an elderly obviously distressed woman.

It was meant to be heroic. But Elizabeth wouldn't think this till much later. Now she was captivated. Captivated by the image.

The warmth of the bench and glory of the sun that drenched her gave this image a beauty and a serenity that would have been impossible on a dull day, all Elizabeth could see and feel was the glistening allure and purity that this image evoked.

'Perhaps this is where my future lies. A message from the divine even'.

Elizabeth put the card in her handbag quickly and carefully, and diverted her gaze from space to her feet. She was certainly at a crossroads in her life. She only lacked the courage enough to choose a path and follow it.

Elizabeth smiled a small smile to herself as she looked out at the main drive of the hospital and peered into all the cars driving around the roundabout. How long could she remain on her roundabout before she crashed? Had she crashed without realising it?

The idea would need deliberate consideration of course, but she would consider it another time. The puritiy of her fantasy was already becoming tainted by overthinking, and her lift had just arrived. She could think about it later when she was alone.

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