26. Hard Times: Jerome

Worm and I walked around until late that night, and hung out with different groups of kids. We even tried our luck with a little begging because we had decided that if we were going to sleep on the streets, we were going to do it properly and not take money with us.
We weren’t that successful though.
We eventually went and slept with a husband and wife that sleep on the streets with their two sons, who were ages 7 and 11 at the time. They were proud to have us stay in what they called their “hotel”.
They gave us a blanket and we went to sleep.
I don’t know how much sleep Worm got, but I slept like a baby. The next morning when we woke up, bright and early, Worm and I made our way to the train station.
When we got to the station, the group of boys that hangs out there frantically ran up to me and told me that Jerome, one of the boys in their group, had been hit by a car the night before and was rushed off by an ambulance and they hadn’t heard anything since.
I decided to go immediately to the government hospital in town. Worm and I made our way to the hospital only to get there and see that Jerome was not there.
From there I called another government hospital that is about a ten-minute drive from downtown Cape Town. When I spoke with a lady there she said that they had in fact had an intake of an unidentified male around the age of fourteen and she begged me to come and try to identify him because he was in critical condition.
We went straight to the hospital.
My heart felt like it was in my throat as we walked up to the ICU section. Jerome was the very first kid I ever sat down and talked to in Cape Town.
The first time I met him was on the first Saturday morning I ever went into downtown Cape Town. I was sitting on a bench and saw him digging through a trashcan, looking for food. It broke my heart that a kid would have to dig through trash to find something to eat.
I walked up to him and asked him if I could buy him something to eat and drink. He was happy to oblige and we sat and ate and talked for a while that day.
Since that day I have met many more kids, and I have even eaten out of trashcans myself. But Jerome was instrumental in that first day to get me interested in the whole street kid scene.
When we got up to the Intensive Care Unit the doctors and nurses warmly welcomed us, because no one had identified him up to that point.
I could feel my heart beating in my throat, and my palms got sweaty as I walked up to the bed that they pointed to. I slowly walked up and stood over the bed. It was Jerome.
He had severe injuries to his head and he was in a vegetable state. The amazing thing is when I started talking with the doctor and confirmed that it was Jerome, the doctor got excited because he said that Jerome’s heart rate went up when he heard my voice.
I told the doctor that I would make contact with the family, who lived in an area that was about a twenty minute drive from downtown, and come back the next day. I told Jerome that I would see him tomorrow and me and Worm went to the train station.
At the station I found a kid that lives in the same area as Jerome that happened to be going home that night and I asked him to send the message to Jerome’s mom. I would have normally have done it myself, but without a car, that was the best I could do.
The next morning I got up early and went to town.
I found the kid that I had sent the message with and he said that he had forgotten to tell Jerome’s mom. I was in a tight spot.
I also ran into Dillon, Jerome’s close friend and half brother, and he wanted to go with me to the hospital.
I called a lady in another organization to ask for a lift into the area where Jerome’s mom lives or if I could borrow her car. I told her it was okay if she couldn’t help but that I needed to know because otherwise I would have to take a taxi into the area, which is extremely time consuming.
She said that it was too dangerous for me to take a taxi into that area and that as soon as she got out of the meeting she attended, she would come to me with her car.
I told her that Dillon and I would wait for her at the hospital.
In the meantime Dillon and I went to check up on Jerome. I realized that Dillon was not aware of how serious Jerome’s condition was.
We had to wait outside the room for the doctor to finish making his rounds, so I decided to talk to Dillon and try and prepare him. It was truly one of the most heartbreaking things I have ever experienced.
I explained to him that Jerome was still alive, but it was almost like he was sleeping and could not be woken up.
I told him that he could talk to Jerome, but Jerome would not talk back.
As I said that, Dillon’s eyes filled up with tears and he got a look of horror on his face. He started crying and asking “why” and I tried to explain as best as possible.
I explained to him again that Jerome could hear him and that it was important for him to talk to him. When we went in, Dillon started walking towards the bed.
When he got close and saw Jerome, he turned around and almost collapsed on the ground and started crying.
I put my arm around him and walked up to the bed with him. Between me and the nurses and everyone else in the room there was not a dry eye to be found.

Dillon gained his composure and went and leaned over and kissed Jerome on the cheek and started rubbing his head. He held Jerome’s hand and started talking to him as though nothing was wrong.
It was one of the most touching scenes I have ever witnessed!
Amazingly, as Dillon talked to Jerome his heart rate sped up again and his fingers, on the hand Dillon was holding, started wiggling.
Dillon talked to him for a while and then we went back out to wait for the car to pick us up to go and tell Jerome’s mom.
The doctor told me that the sooner the better because they didn’t know how much longer he would live.
I called the lady from the organization again, getting a little worried because it was getting later and later and her phone was on voice mail. I phoned a couple of other people and ran into brick wall after brick wall.
I finally reached the lady, sometime around 5:00 in the afternoon and she said that it was “too late” to drive into that area and that she was sending two volunteers from her organization to the hospital.
I was excited because I thought they were driving her car, but she said that they weren’t.
I told her that there was absolutely NOTHING to be done at the hospital and it was extremely important that we make contact with his family before he died.
She said, “Well, I guess you can still take the taxi if you want to go.” Words cannot express the anger I felt!
Finally, after asking around, I was able to find a nurse that lived in the same area and was just going off shift. Dillon gave her the address and she said that she would immediately go and inform Jerome’s mother.
Dillon went and told Jerome goodbye and told him that he would see him tomorrow and then we went back to the train station and I went home after a long, emotionally draining day.
The next morning I woke up early again and went again to the station and found Dillon.
We went straight to the hospital.
I was happy to hear that not only had the nurse informed the family, but they had managed to come to see him around 8:00 the night before. I felt relieved because I really felt it was important that they at least got to see him before he died.
The doctor said he was amazed that Jerome was still alive, and it was almost as if he was waiting for something.
He seemed to be really fighting.
His breathing looked strained and his whole chest would lift up when he inhaled. A terrible sound came out as he would breathe in and out. Dillon and I walked up to the bed.
I stood on one side and held one of his hands and Dillon stood on the other and held his other hand. We stood there for no more than twenty minutes before I heard the heart rate machine slow down.
I can still see those little lines getting farther and farther apart as his heart began to give up, eventually going to the straight line and solid beep.
His painful breathing stopped and for the first time in a few days, he looked perfectly peaceful. I looked over at the nurse and saw the relieved, yet saddened look on her face.
We didn’t tell Dillon at that moment and he and I took a walk while the nurses tended to the necessary procedure.
Jerome’s family showed up minutes after he had passed away. They were all extremely emotional.
We told Dillon and he took it pretty hard.
He eventually calmed down and wanted to go in and look at the body one last time. He went in and said his final goodbyes and we thanked the ICU crew for all of their amazing help and care, and then we left.
I left Dillon at the train station and I went home.
Eric’s death was difficult because, though I did get to see him a few days before he died, I didn’t feel like I truly had the opportunity to say goodbye. If I would have known that was the last time I was going to see him that day, I probably would have talked a little longer, gave him a bigger hug and properly said goodbye.
Obviously, there was no way for me to know. It really made me think though.
With Jerome’s death, though it was extremely emotional, I felt more of a closure. I felt like I was there through the whole process and I was honored to have been able to hold his hand in his final seconds.
Little did I know that I was only about halfway through the trials and there were more waiting for me around the corner.