Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital

by Sheri Fink

He’d grown to enjoy the prospect of coffee and doughnuts, the relaxed repartee, the aura of pride and concern most citizens exuded when exercising their civic duty. He might be one witness of several, but he knew his opinion on the manner of death was pivotal in a murder case. Today he didn’t want to go. This case was different. He felt pressure from family and friends who opposed Pou’s prosecution. He felt pressured by the bad publicity the city was getting. On the other side were his religious convictions. In his years as coroner, he regularly saw people die who had no reason to die and people survive accidents that should have left no one alive. He had seen the young perish quickly and the old live unexpectedly. You could never figure out God’s plan. You just had to try to fit into it, like water taking the shape of its vessel. He liked to tell that to young people. The secret to life is learning what God has planned for you.