"Angels Among Us"

The duties of a nurse are many, and I  have been a part of society, that will benefit greatly because we have such dedicated people here to take care of us when we can't do for ourselves.

To be a nurse, you have to have a genuine desire to help others. It offers a great challenge to those who take it up as a profession. The greatest reward that a nurse recieves, is the knowledge that her or his skill has helped to relieve suffering, or to save a life. A nurse has to like people, and want to help them. She must be self reliant, and be able to use good judgment. She has to be tactfull, honest, responsible, and be able to work with others. She also has to be in good health. In other words, they have to very special people.

In the hospital, from the time you enter your room, until the day that you are dismissed, that nurse is your guardian. Her or his patient is of the first importance . From day one, she or he is there to reassure the patient and to keep that patient's morale up. She gives emotional support, as well as physical care. She takes charge of the patient's routine care each day, in the way of making sure, that he has his daily bath,and eats the proper foods.  She also sees that the exercises and treatments that the doctor has prescibed , are carried out. She is there to keep a watchful eye on the patient, and reports to the doctor about any changes in the physical condition, mental attitude, and possible drug reactions.

So you might say that the nurse is your parent away from home, or your boss away from work. She  follows a strict routine each day , so that the patient might soon be able to go home.  There are many ways of saying what a nurse is, but I have my own definition of what a nurse is. She or he is a member of a group that I call,"The Angels Among Us"

As a believer in Angels, I sometimes wonder, just how many there are in this world ,as we know it. I have always thought of the new-borned children as, Angels sent by God ,to us as parents to raise and to love, and to teach them the values put forth by those who raised us. Everyday, I see things that re-inforce my belief. The person that does without, so that his or her children might be fed and clothed. That father who works all day, even though he is about to drop, so that his family can survive. That mother ,who tends to every need of the family, that she has been picked to raise. The set of parents, who worry about the children, even though they have grown up and are on thier own.

All of these are Angels here on earth. And each of these people have a Guardian Angel, watching over them.

As a person who has spent much time in the hospital, either as a patient or a relative of someone else who is a patient, I have witnessed another version of an Angel. We call them "nurses", and many times we think of them as hard-nose workers ,in a medical place and no more. Nurses , as I have witnessed,do have a heart. They are very compassionate, and I have even seen them cry. Nurses in our world ,are one of the most valuable resources we have. They work long hours, and they perform jobs that most of us could not do. The job they do is of the clean-up nature of a patient that has an accident, or spills something ,that needs to be cleaned up right away. They sometimes have to take abuse from unruly patients and even visitors, that you or I would not take.

As I said, I have been a patient in the hospital, and there were times when I felt helpless, because I was confined to the bed. But any time I needed something, all I had to do was ring for one of those Angels, and just as soon as they could, they took care of my needs. Many times, when visiting hours were over, and it was lonely, there was always one of those Angels peeking thier head in to ask if  I needed anything. There were times when they had time to just talk, and this sure made you feel good. And when you were just visiting a friend, or a family member, they would give you a few extra minutes to be with the patient. Believe it or not ,folks, these ladies and men in white are Angels.

There was a time in our life that was to be a great loss to our family. Our daughter had cancer, and was to undergo chemo-and radiation to try and arrest that terrible disease. For five months, we were a family with the fear of losing our little girl. But you know what? That is where I really found out about the Angels here on earth. They have been here all along, and we call them "nurses". From day one, I saw the dedication of the nurses to the patient. I saw all the hard work that each and every one of them do for the patient. I know that it is thier job to take care of the patients, but I saw other things that they do. They not only took care of the person there in the bed, they did many things for the family too.

Many times I talked to Patricia about the care that she was getting there, and she would always say that they were like family to her. There were times when I would ask them how she was doing and got a answer that was truthfull and tactfull. And looking them in the eyes, you could see that moist tear starting to come out. These great ladies and men really care about that person lying in bed with a terminal illness. But they have to be professional, and they can't show that moist eyes in front of the patient and sometimes in front of the immediate family.

In the last few days of our daughter's life, and in all of the other patients that didn't make it, there was a part of the hearts of those nurses, that went with the patient as they slipped away. There was another part of that heart that went home with the family too. That night that Patricia went home to be with God, I made the statement that "She left the "Floor Of Angels" to be one.

When my wife has to go to the hospital to get well, I know that she is in good hands. I know that if she needs anything ,or just to ask a question, the nurses are there to help. It takes many hours of training and schooling for those nurses to be as good as they are. It takes dedication to stay at that job. And it takes love of your fellow human beings to go to work each day and perform those many duties, that you and I would not, and could not do. Only someone with the name of a Angel does this day after day. Surely, this is the work of "Angels Among Us".

May we always be blessed with them here on earth. And may we always have time to stop and tell them thanks for being there for us.

I hope that through this article, you have been blessed, and I hope that you will be able to witness the great work , performed by the "Angels Among Us". Thanks for your time.