Tuesday, November 29, 2011

My Weekend on Call

It's 10pm and I should be getting ready for bed, but seeing as how I'm working from home this week, I don't mind being a bit tired in the morning.  As soon as I'm done writing, I'm going to pour myself a small glass of wine, sit my boo'tay on the couch and watch "chopped" :)  I can't cook for crap, but I'm really enjoying the cooking shows lately. 

Anyway, I don't do it very often anymore, but I took call over the Thanksgiving holiday.  With Michael being out due to the accident, I had no problem covering for him.  I feel like every time I go on a call, its a major gut check.   I must admit, I'm horrible at practicing what I preach.  Live each day to the fullest.....I always say this yet I fail so frequently at doing it. 

My first call out was Thanksgiving morning.  I was asked to go pick up the equipment of a patient who passed away earlier that morning.  Normally we don't do pickups on weekends, but I didn't want the family to have to look at the equipment the entire weekend.   The gal who passed away had earlier moved down to the valley to be with her son.  Once her cancer was diagnosed as terminal, she told her son she wanted to pass away in the White Mountains.  Her son rented her the most beautiful little house for her to stay in.  This is where she stayed until the end.  What an amazing gesture by her son.  When I arrived, her two sisters were there trying to make all the arrangements.  They did their best to be strong, but by the time I left, there were no dry eyes in the place. 

My other pick up was the day after Thanksgiving.  I had never met this lady, but in the brief moment I spent with her spouse, I was heart broken.  These two had gone to high school together then lost touch once they graduated.  Just two years ago they met up again and fell for each other.  The moved in together and looked forward to a bright future together.  Just one month ago, she was diagnosed with cancer and given 6 months to live.  She barely made it one month.  The husband tried to be so strong, but you could see him fighting back the tears as he told me their story.  So very heart wrenching. 

Here most of us are getting ready to chow down on Thanksgiving meals yet there are so many out there dealing with such pain.  It's a stark reminder for all of us once again to cherish the moment.   Look around, there is usually someone that has it much worse.  I think it's our responsibility to recognize this struggle and do our best to help.  Put our selfish selves aside and go out of our way to make someone elses life a little bit brighter.  Make someone smile. 

I didn't want this to be a gloomy post, but just wanted to share a little more about the weekend.  Time for the glass of wine and the comfy couch.  Good night.  I'm too tired to proof read tonight so forgive me for any grammatical mistakes.

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