One small miracle

Some of you know my friend Judy. She's a critical care nurse in the cardiac intensive care unit of a regional hospital. After a long career in nursing education and administration, last year Judy went back to the exhausting rigors of bedside nursing. She is 60 years old.

Her patients are fragile, often frightened souls, who have had heart attacks or undergone heart surgery. I want to tell you about one of them. We'll call her Madeline.

Madeline is a gentle, sweet-faced grandmother in her 70's. Last week she had emergency heart surgery. Judy was her nurse. Madeline thought surely she would die. She was so convinced of it, in fact, that Judy was concerned her patient would give up trying to recover.

So Judy did the only thing she could think of. She brought Madeline a copy of The Great Silent Grandmother Gathering and asked her daughter, Amy, to read it to her mom. She did. Both women cried. "The story gave us hope," Amy said.

On Saturday, I arrived in the town where Judy lives. "One of my patients wants to meet you," she said. "Her name is Madeline."

I took Madeline one of Nancy's grandmother pendants and pointed out that on the back it says, "We're saving the world." I told her if she put it on that meant she was willing to do her part. She cried. Amy cried. Judy cried.

Then Madeline put the pendant on. Judy said she wore it all day.

I forgot to mention that Madeline is a gifted artist. Her work is part of a distinguished, juried show that will open soon. Looks like she will be out of the hospital in time for the opening.

Thank you Ashland.