A few months ago, I lost two uncles within a couple of weeks of each other. As was the rest of the family, I was very distraught, however, unable to find closure through their funerals, as I was thousands of miles away. I talked to my supervisor, Sister Theresa, about this. She invited me to her home for the weekend, where the annual memorial service for her parents was going to take place. She and her family graciously and generously allowed me to include both of my uncles in the service. Prayers were said for them. There was a lot of good food, dancing, laughing and singing. It was something they both would have enjoyed tremendously, and it was also a way for my to honor and celebrate their lives in my own special way.
On April 15, 2013, my beloved home town of Boston was rocked to its core when three bombs went off at the end mark of the Boston Marathon. Three people were killed instantly, including and eight year old boy, and over a hundred people were seriously and critically injured. My brother, Matthew, lives and works in Boston. For twenty minutes I didn't know if he was OK. Those were some of the worst twenty minutes of my life, and I don't want to feel that way ever again. Like most who have been touched by this completely senseless tragedy, I am having a difficult time comprehending this. When this first happened, I asked God why. It took several days for me to be able to have an open and honest discussion with a close and trusted friend about the situation. I felt guilty because, although several people on my Facebook news feed asked for prayer for the bomber, I wasn't one of them. My friend and I went to church that afternoon, and afterward we just sat together and prayed for whatever came into our hearts. I found myself praying for the person who committed these crimes. The bible teaches that when satan knows he is in the presence of God, he must bow down to God's power because God's power is stronger than even satan himself. So I asked God to penetrate the evilness of this person, and to enter his heart, if only for this never to happen again.
Today I "spoiled" my patients by bringing them bananas. Although I tend to bring in candy more often than I should, I do like to indulge them in healthy foods as well, at least from time to time. Today was my day to visit the ward for folks who have been critically and seriously burned. I try to go in the afternoons, because many of the patients are burned over sixty percent of their bodies, and have a difficult time moving. The nurses have a hard enough time tending to the patient's medical needs; often times they don't have time to feed the patients when the food is actually warm. So, I like to help them get a warm meal in their tummies whenever I can. Needless to say, all were excited to eat bananas. As I mashed up little bits and fed them from my hand to their mouths, I couldn't help but feel like I was helping the victims of the blast, vicariously, through them. For every child I comforted and allowed to cry on my shoulder, I was comforting all of the children who were victims in Boston. I don't know. It may seem crazy, but helping people whenever I can is always the best medicine for me in dealing with difficult situations in my own life. Today one of the nurses in the burn unit said to me, "God will bless you,". She didn't understand; He already does bless me, every single moment I spend with my patients. I have always said and will always continue to say that my patients give me so much more than I will ever be able to give them.
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