I Was in the Presence of an Angel

Dear ER Nurse,

Recently I hurt my ankle and headed over to the hospital to ensure that it was not fractured.

I hobbled into the hospital. The triage nurses were in a great mood and before I knew it, I was escorted to a back room where 3 other people were waiting to be attended to.

I quietly sat on my chair, took out my book and began to read.

And then you walked in. No fuss, no announcement – just your calming presence.

You went over to the young man sitting waiting for his IV drip to finish and you immediately engaged with him, like he was one of the kids in your neighborhood. You made him feel safe, so safe in fact, that when his drip was done, he quietly asked, “Will you be here tomorrow?” This touched my heart.

After he left, a middle aged woman suffering from terrible sores on her legs from an autoimmune disease came and sat down. From the moment she walked into the room her personality filled the space. She was full of flavour.

Some may have been bothered by her constant chatter and yet, you engaged with her, speaking to her like she was your neighbour. You met her exactly where she was at – no judgment, no questions, no annoyance – just compassion and humility.

I was so drawn into the interaction between the two of you, that I was no longer present to my novel. It was as if time stopped and all that mattered was the banter between the two of you.

I was captivated. I felt like I was in the presence of an angel.

You were kind and treated this woman like the human she is. And even when the man behind the curtain interrupted and loudly proclaimed that the conversation was “too much”, you didn’t let it phase you.

Although my ankle was just sprained, I’d do it all over again, to be in that room witnessing you, a beautiful person.

Thank you for the gift you gave me – to lose track of time, to be totally present and in the moment, and to witness someone being who they are, meeting her patients exactly where they are.