Saturday, November 24, 2007

Another Saint is Home

I was up a good piece of the night last night, and early in the morning the call came to come to the hospital. Lauralea heard the phone ring and woke me and I got up and somehow got myself dressed and drove the deserted streets to the hospital.

It's true, our Mildred has gone home.

She passed peacefully and gently, from one world to another, and now she's home.

I don't think I've ever met another human being who fought death so many times, and won. Who had so many physical struggles and losses in her life but who faced each one with the faith that God was real and it would be ok.

And in spite of such difficulty and increasing loss, she never became embittered, never permanently angry at God or others, or even herself.

She taught me so many things.

Peace, much peace to her memory.

3 comments:

  1. I got the news this morning too since Mildred was one of Annette's shirt tale relatives. I admired Mildred's approach to life. She was courageous.

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  2. I had the privilege of being the nurse on duty the last night that Mildred spent in the nursing home, the night before she was admitted to the hospital for the last time. She had just returned to us that evening after another acute episode where she had spent the night in ER. Upon return to the home, she was obviously anxious and uncomfortable. The thought crossed my mind "I wonder if Randall has seen her lately" and I debated calling you; she needed some spiritual reassurance, I felt. I quickly acknowledged the fact that, while it would be nice if you were there, I also serve the God whom she served so faithfully! So, I told her I had a strange question for her. She asked what that question was, and I asked if I could pray with her. She replied, oh yes, please. So I prayed that God would bring her peace and that the Lord who had always lead her to the green pastures and brought her rest, would do that for her once again. After I finished, she told me that that meant more to her than I could imagine, and she settled.

    It was a simple thing; too often we nurses get going on the medical, even emotional, side of caring and neglect to respond to the spiritual side. Praying with her was a beautiful experience that we shared that night and I'll not forget it, nor the lesson I learned in remembering to be spiritually available.

    She was very dear to us at HBH and we will notice the loss of her and her kind spirit.

    ..strike up the band, another soldier's come home....

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  3. Thank you Maureen.

    You do good work there.
    Probably because you have a good heart.

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