Remembering the Blessings

Heaven got another angel this morning.  Another sweet patient earned his angel wings and has left our staff devastated in the process.  We all grow so attached to our patients and their families that we grieve along side them.  Please add the doctors and nurses of All Children's Hem/Onc/BMT program to your prayer lists.  We all need to be surrounded in His arms during this tragic time.  As we all try to wrap our heads around what's happened, I can't help but think about all the things that I'm so blessed with in this life.

First and foremost, I'm so blessed to have my health.  Sure I've had some health problems but nothing that I cannot deal with.  I'm even more blessed to have healthy children.  I thank God every day for this.  I don't know what I'd do if one day I woke up and had to face what our families face every day. And I pray I never will.  But if I do, I pray that I can be strong like our families are.

I'm blessed to have my family.  I have a loving husband, two amazing children, and the best family anyone could ask for.  My parents have been amazing role models for my brothers and I.  I can only hope that one day, my kids will think that the Hubs and I have been just as amazing as they are.

I'm blessed to be able to provide for my family.  We have a lovely home and the ability to provide our children with not only the essentials (like food and shelter, etc) but we can provide our family with the experiences and memories that will last a lifetime.  I know that not every child grows up having an annual pass to Disney.  Heck, I didn't even have one as a child.  But I know that the price we pay for this fails in comparison to the memories we've made and will continue to make as a family.

Now more than ever, I'm blessed to have the job I have.  It's difficult on a daily basis. It's exhausting both physically and emotionally.  But I know that I'm making a difference in this world.  My patients are my heroes.  They are strong, resilient, inspiring, and full of life.  They are the reason I get up 4 days a week before the sun comes up to go to work.  At the end of the day, the paycheck doesn't matter.  It's the drawings, the homemade cards, and the pictures that are worth more than my paycheck.  It's the photo albums full of little bald heads. These kids are what matters.  I am truly blessed that I can play a small role in their big lives.

As I sit here tonight, at a loss for words over the loss of this patient, I can't help but smile because he was such a beautiful soul.  He never lost that childhood innocence even though he had gone through so much.  He found joy in the little things in life.  He had a smile that could light up a room.  He was one of my heroes.