A Nurse's Story

It was approximately 8:30 a.m. on a busy morning when an elderly gentleman in his eighties arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb.

He told me kindly that he was in a hurry, because he had an appointment at 9:00 a.m.

I took his vital signs and asked him to please wait there in the room for one of the doctors.

I knew it was going to take more than an hour before someone would to able to attend to him. After I saw him check his watch anxiously for the time, I decided I would evaluate his wound, since I was not busy with another patient.

On examination, I saw that the wound was well healed. So, I spoke to one of the doctors to get the supplies I would need to remove his sutures and redress the wound.

We began to engage in a conversation while I was taking care of his wound. I asked him if he had another doctor’s appointment later, since he was in such a hurry.

The gentleman told me no.  He said that he needed to go to the nursing home to have breakfast with his wife. When I asked about her health, he told me that she had been in the nursing home for a while.  She was a victim of Alzheimer’s Disease.

I probed further and asked if he thought she would be upset if he was slightly late. He replied that she no longer knew who he was.  With his head down, he whispered softly that she had not been able to recognize him for the last five years.

Intrigued, I asked him, “And you still go every morning, even though she doesn’t know who you are?”

He smiled as he patted my hand and said, “No, she doesn’t know me, but I still know who she is.”

I had goose bumps, as I thought to myself, “That is the kind of love I want in my life.”

True love is neither physical, nor romantic. True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be ... and will never be.

[Author Unknown]


“A writer soon learns that easy to read is hard to write.” ~CJ Heck

The Grateful Stone

"Treasure Chest"

"The soul may have many symbols with which it reaches toward God." ~ Anya Seton


Humanity has long believed many symbols to be spiritually sacred. The sideways eight, for example, the symbol for eternity. Another is the endless knot.

Crystals are also symbols and thought to be very powerful for focusing spiritual energies. And who wouldn't recognize the universal symbol for love, the heart?

 For a child, a symbol can be anything at all, and sometimes even the smallest thing can be a sign from God and the Universe that they are not alone.

The Grateful Stone

by CJ Heck

I have a little treasure chest
and only one thing is inside.
It’s a very special treasure
and I found it at low tide.

To me it’s something special.
I call it the grateful stone.
It showed how prayers work.
It's a sign I’m not alone.

My grampa had a heart attack
while we were at the beach.
He lives so very far away,
so far away, and out of reach.

Mommy had her cell phone
and doctors called her there.
When I saw my mommy cry,
I knew I had to try a prayer.

I closed my eyes and talked to God.
Please let Grampa be okay.
Don’t let Mom lose her Daddy.
We can’t go that far away.

When I opened up my eyes
and looked down on the sand,
I saw a shiny little stone
and it felt good in my hand.

I slipped it in my pocket
and I rubbed it two whole days,
praying Grampa would get better
if only God could find a way.

Then mommy’s cell phone rang.
They said Grandpa could go home.
That's why I have my treasure chest
for my special grateful stone.


[From the book, Barking Spiders 2, by CJ Heck]
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"A writer soon learns that easy to read is hard to write." ~CJ Heck