The banality of overdose deaths

I was in the off-leash dog park the other day, having myself a pleasant few laps while Bruno snoozed in the shade. On the other side of the fence were two ambulances, a firetruck, and four police vehicles. Being curious, I stopped and peered over the hedge. A dude on a stretcher. A couple of first responders doing life-saving stuff. I did a couple more laps and took a moment to check out the progress each time. By the fourth lap, they’d loaded the dude into the ambulance. They drove off without the lights and sirens on. What struck me was how normal it’s become to witness someone dying on the street in the middle of the day. When I was a kid, such a spectacle would have drawn a crowd. The only audience on this occasion were the first responders, and it’s their job to care. Other than that, people walked by, cycled by, drove by, and noticed nothing more than a minor inconvenience. Just another day at the dog park.