Nothing like rising up early on a Saturday to tackle the day before it tackles me. So today I decided to start with a cup of Door County Inn Keepers Blend Coffee. It is a real "waker upper". Breakfast was simple. An English muffin with peanut butter and cherry jam. Now it's time to write.
Yesterday at work our hospital emergency department became "over busy". Part of my duties when on site are to walk over to the ED and see if I can help when they call the high census declaration. Now I know nothing about medicine except how to take my own prescriptions when ill. But my job during "over busy' is to run for supplies or go through the waiting room and offer anything I can do for comfort like coffee for the visitors or warm blankets if needed by the waiting patients. I make sure if we need extra chairs in the waiting room some are found and placed out for use. In all truth I am really out of my element when I do this.
Fortunately I have the luxury of learning on the job. All I have to do is imitate those around me. I watch the nurses who are doing the same thing and or treating the patients. I learned this. A greeting that starts with a smile and a welcome that includes full eye contact sets the tone. Making sure that the patient or visitor knows your first name is very assuring to them. Then keeping a promise like delivering a heated blanket in two minutes or coming back to ask the family member if they would like more coffee is just being compassionate within the parameters set by my inability to do anything clinical. Now there are those who have arrived and are not happy campers and it could be because of pain. I can't even offer an aspirin but I can refill an ice pack that is providing temporary comfort. I watched my nursing friends and when they are doing this they hustle just a little more and always come back with that same smile and warm greeting.
I am always amazed at the compassion these caregivers show and minister with. I also know that I could never do their job. They work long hours (so do I) but I am not doing it on my feet all the time. They might be having a bad day, but it cannot ever be seen by a patient. Each person gets treated with dignity and respect even when some aren't so nice in return. Then they have to know all that medical stuff. So I salute those people wearing the scrub clothes. I will stick with my shirt and tie.
Here's the funny thing. I decided to experiment with this new found technique at home. I usually come home and enter through our door with a loud "It's me. I am home". Rene acknowledges me by saying "How was your day?'" I am already headed to the bedroom to change clothes and I holler back "Ok or it sucked" one of those two answers. Last night I tested what I had been practicing. I came in to the kitchen where Rene was washing some dishes, made eye contact and said "I am glad to be home. How are you? Let me dry those dishes while you finish washing those others." The dishes were done, and I noticed my experimental patient was going into shock and I needed medicine for the moment. "Let me get you a glass of cold Dr. Pepper from the refrigerator and then I will be back in five minutes after I change my clothes. Then I will whip up two salads and we can eat dinner."
That exchange although almost deadly for my wife/patient set the tone for the night. We worked late on chores and then I heard "I am turning on the baseball game for you." That has never happened in our 1000 years of marriage. Kindness and compassion needs to be practiced not only at work but at home. Yesterday while at work I received plenty of smiles in return when I imitated those who know what they are doing when it comes to compassion. It's called the law of the harvest.
Galatians 6:7-9 New Living Translation (NLT)
7 Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. 8 Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. 9 So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.
God bless,
Marty
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