For the past three years, very few people have helped Lale. In fact, he has mostly had to fend for himself, even with the network of friends and connections he made in the concentration camps. Consequently, it is a deeply touching moment when the stationmaster unexpectedly gives him food and coffee, deciding to give up his own dinner in order to help a downtrodden fellow human. This, of course, is the kind of empathy that has been missing from Lale’s life for far too long.