Here’s to the Healers
We passed the year anniversary of Stan’s death on March 15, 2020. It was one of the last days we could enter a restaurant to eat together, and the first day that in-person church was canceled.
We again wore Auburn colors, went to the cemetery after lunch, and celebrated Stan’s life.
We also remembered the lives of those who worked to spare his life.
And now in this deadly era of COVID-19, these nurses and doctors are again foremost in our minds.
May God bless those of you who are the healers in the wake of this new coronavirus. You are our heroes. You are God’s special servants.
And to the families of the healers? You deserve special blessings, too, for the sacrifices you are making. May God keep you all safe.
Why I’m Sad
I’m sad.
I didn’t like seeing Stan connected by tubes to bags on IV poles. I didn’t like that he needed round-the-clock care in ICU for week after long week. I didn’t like that the lights always needed to be on, that the machines always needed to beep, that the nurses always had to stick and measure.
I drove home from the hospital that last Friday morning, March 15, 2019, one final time of leaving Stan’s now quiet and empty Room 11 that he’d occupied for so long.
I opened my Lent prayer app to the prayer-of-the-day.
This is what God had planted for March 15.
We Still Need People
Stan died in the early hours that Friday morning. Monday was his visitation. Tuesday was his funeral. Stan was the husband of Kathy, one of the Four Corners, one of my life-long best friends.
I’ve known Stan forever. First as my big brother’s friend, then as my own friend.
Those previous few months, I watched Stan breathe through one machine and watched his blood circulate through another. Modern medicine can seem quite miraculous.
But technological improvements alone still aren’t enough.
We still need people.
So now, even though I’m sad, I’m also grateful.
Here’s to the Healers
I applaud you who work with the sick and dying, you who are strong for the weak, you who stay up late and get up early so patients can have 24-hour medical attention.
The 6th floor medical staff in the Cardiac Care ICU at our hospital that took care of Stan (Anna, Taylor, Will, Des, Brandie, Leslie, Mallory, +) are more than phenomenal workers, they are phenomenal souls.
They know what to do with their school learning: they adjust levels and change out lines and read x-rays.
But they also know what to do with their emotional instincts: they offer genuine hope and they give generous care and they cry real tears.
They have more than skill. They have heart.
So here’s to the nurses, the doctors, the assistants, the caregivers: Keep doing what you do. Keep nurturing and protecting and tending to us when we’re sick, when we get better, and even when we die.
We need you. We pray for you. We love you.
Thank you for how you took care of Stan. And thank you for how you took care of us.
* * *
Do you work in the medical field? Thank you! Have you had a good experience with your medical caregivers? Please share in the comments.
revised from the archives
- Do You Need More? Or Less? Grace & Truth Link-Up
- Ways to Use Technology to Stay Socially Connected During Social Distancing
Beautiful beautiful tribute to the healers.
Thank you for putting words around what our hearts have felt so often when we are in need of care.
I know some who have horror stories to tell about their health care workers. I am not one of them (and I hope I never am). I’m grateful for everyone who has cared for me.
I’m so sorry for your loss, Lisa. May God give you, his family, and your friends special strength and peace! Love and blessings to you!
I’m so sorry for your loss. I’m praying for Kathy and her family in this dreaded time in life. May God hold them close to His heart.
And thanks for honoring the folks that work to keep people alive daily. My wife and two oldest are nurses. To see the toll this kind of event has on their lives is impactful. It is a calling to serve in that capacity.
I’m prying for you too, sister.
I am sorry for your loss. I am also grateful to you for writing this beautiful tribute to those who extend care and compassion and healing during difficult times. They are a gift which words truly cannot express fully.
I am so sorry for the loss of your friend. Even knowing he is with the Lord, it’s hard as we miss them.
I don’t think I would have connected that verse with nurses and caregivers at first, but it certainly does fit. What a lovely tribute to some of the most overworked and underpaid people on the planet. The good ones are worth their weight in gold.
Lisa, I’m sorry for the loss of your friend, but I’m glad he was so well looked after. This is a beautiful tribute to medical staff and caregivers and the wonderful work they do which is not always appreciated as it should be.
I am so sorry for your loss! What a lovely tribute to the healthcare workers who work tirelessly to care for us!! They are not appreciated nearly enough!! Thank you for this and thank you for linking up at Worth Beyond Rubies!!
I am so sorry for the loss of your friend. Healthcare workers do deserve our gratitude and a special blessing. My dear mother-in-law was a nurse. I know how hard she worked to bring solace to others and to relieve pain. She truly had a heart of gold.
I am so sorry for your loss. May God bless you in this hard time.
And I agree with you. Medical workers make such a difference in our experiences of illness and suffering! May God bless them as well.
Aww, I’m so sorry for the loss of your friend. May the Holy Spirit bring you comfort and enable and equip you to comfort your friend.
OH, Lisa, I am so sorry for this loss of a good friend. I worked as an RN most of my adult life – I considered it a calling, sacred work. To be able to connect with another physically, mentally, and spiritually. This is a beautiful tribute. Thank you for writing it so well.
I am sorry friend. Thank you for your words.
Bless you for being there for Kathy and Stan. And may God guide, bless and give strength to the nurses and doctors that work hard for life. I am now retired, but know the challenges that nurses face.
Oh, yes, amen, amen, Lisa!
Our oldest granddaughter, 25, is an RN at a hospital in Nashville, TN, on the front battle lines for those who arrive needing her care. She could never have imagined this would be part of the story God had in mind when she felt led to go into nursing when she was in college, but God knew who He called and though her faith will be tested we pray daily she will be strengthened and be protected as she serves others who are ill.
So sorry to hear about the loss of Stan and thank you for highlighting our health care workers. I reached out to a friend over the weekend who is a nurse serving daily on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. Thankfully, she’s a Christian woman who is trusting God all the way. I’m sure they took great care of Stan during his time of illness and now he no longer has to suffer. May God of comfort be with you as you grieve his loss.
We so need to stop and acknowledge these “soldiers” on the front lines, Lisa! Thank you for this lovely reminder of your dear friend Stan and the impact he had on you and others. But most of all thank you for reminding us to pray for and thank the medical helpers in all corners of the world. They are doing a job that is priceless right now! Pinned this!
Thank you…thank you, Lisa. The healthcare profession is placing their own health on the line every day, all day…for us! Yes, we truly must lift them in prayer. I am so very grateful for each one because they each truly do have heart.
Thanks to your heart as well, my sister.
Caring through Christ, ~ linda
Sorry about losing Stan. Even a year out it can still hurt. I have had so many good experiences with health care workers that it would take he hours to tell about them all. Just last week we saw my sons pediatric doctor ( the one we visited when he was three and he told me later that day, I want him for my doctor). He is so special. Remembers my son and always connects with him and makes him feel special. Yes, thank you Healthcare workers.
Yes, oh yes. Healthcare workers are vital. I’m so sorry about Stan and I understand the pain of losing a friend. I’ve lost both my parents, my grandmother and my best friend. It’s hard. The men and women in healthcare are most of the time hardworking, loving, caring individuals who deserve our respect BUT occasionally I have dealt with arrogant doctors who saw my loved one as a number….not a person. I pray for all healthcare workers and pray that during this time of deep distress they remember that each person they work with is someone’s mother, sister, friend. Love and hugs to you!
This is a timely post to re-visit, Lisa.
And now that I have a son who works in healthcare, I’m so aware of the risks and the level of commitment.
Lisa, hi! And thanks for honoring the healers. My daughter is a nurse, my brother-in-law is a Hospice chaplain. These are hard times.
Your post reminded me that in some way, shape, or form, God has called us all to be healers as we encounter people on the way. May He give us eyes to see those who need what we can offer, may we do it all in His power.
Lisa, This certainly sheds a different light on COVID-19. It is a sad, lonely virus! A friend shared this link with me recently. https://dnyuz.com/2020/03/24/when-you-die-of-the-coronavirus-you-die-alone/
This well-written article is really eye-opening as to what doctors and nurses on the frontlines of this virus are facing. I have been compelled to pray for our healthcare workers even more now!!!
Pinned.
Thank you for linking up at InstaEncouragements!
Oh, that article. Crying as I read it now, Patsy. 🙁 Yes, we need to be praying more than ever for our healthcare workers who are having to fulfill ALL the roles to these patients. Lord, rain down your mercy on us all.
Amen! Thank you so much for this tribute to the healers, Lisa. Medical personnel are doing an even greater sacrifice of service these days. Going above and beyond their strength. Though many were already before. Love and blessings of strength and peace in this difficult time and also in the ache of missing your friend!
Good and timely one, Lisa. I recall Stan and how close to the family he was. It is sad. This world is fallen and none of us get to be in His glory in these failing soul cages. I’ll look forward to meeting Stan.
My oldest two are both NP’s. The oldest is testing people everyday. She even has been tested herself and is waiting results… Scary times. She just tested three nurses that work where she works and they all have symptoms.
God is in control. He will deliver all of one way or the other.
Thanks for a wonderful reminder….I echo my thanks to the heroes among us. There are many – and many who are in the medical and healthcare field. I appreciate all they are doing and willing to sacrifice.
grateful and sad – all emotions I am experiencing with this pandemic too. But you expressed it so well. Thank you
Thank you for revisiting this post now, even as your own loss is felt in the memories too. Yes, may we remember to pray for the many serving in the trenches of healthcare. My best friend, who is at risk herself, is a surgical nurse serving today in the places of such heavy need. So, my heart is praying so much for her and for all those who serve us.
I am sorry for your loss, but stand with you in sending a virtual pat on the back for all of the healers and helpers always – but especially right now.
I am so sorry for your loss, Lisa, but so grateful you shared this heartfelt and moving post. I remember so many of the wonderful healers we met when my parents were in the last years and days of their lives. I am praying for all of the healers now as we face this daunting disease. Thank you for sharing these wonderful, timely words and for being a part of the Hearth and Soul Community. Stay safe and well!