MOST of us experience problems at some stage in our lifetimes. Unless you're born with a silver spoon, the rigours of day-to-day existence can often appear overwhelming.

Happily, most of us have stable, settled lives. We have the comfort of loved ones, community and the routine of the workplace. These factors help give shape and meaning to a complex world.

Nicholas Lewtschuk appears to have had no such support systems. He had no job, no home... and for all we know, no hope. An inquest has yet to decide the exact circumstances, but all the indications are that the 31-year-old froze to death on a bitterly cold autumn night.

This newspaper asks you to pause for a moment and try to imagine the miserable life of this rough sleeper and his equally squalid end.

For who knows, as we sit comfortably in centrally-heated houses in the bosom of our families, what the fates might one day have in store for any of us?

Maggs Day Centre provides unstinting support for the homeless, but there is only so much it can do. The organisation is also beset with funding problems - perhaps the time has now come for the various welfare agencies to try to work out a solution.

The fact is that we live in an increasingly complex society, one in which there are bound to be winners and losers. Nicholas Lewtschuk was in the latter category - but he certainly didn't deserve to die like that in the Britain of 2005.