Heart Hope by Olga

A phone call from the emergency room quickly alerted me to the fact that my budding ballerina, Molly, had cut her foot. This evening as she was dancing through the house in preparation for bed she passed a magazine rack and a metal edge caught her foot, making a long gash between her pinkie toe and its neighbor.  This is not the first trip to the emergency room for my daughter Margaret and her children. Five year old Will has had stitches a couple of times and a broken arm, so he was familiar with what Molly was facing as they raced to the hospital.  Will’s little mind must have had multiple thoughts swirling around as he reflected on his previous trips to the ER, but what came out of his mouth were precious words of love, kindness and compassion. As he sat wringing his hands in apprehension he said, “Molly, you can squeeze my thumb when it hurts.” These were soothing words he had probably heard before which had brought him comfort in a time of pain. Scripture tells us that...

A couple of times a month I volunteer at the Vail Valley Medical Center in the Sonnenalp Breast Imaging Center, where mammograms are performed. They only have volunteers on Mondays and Tuesdays because those are called “diagnostic days” which means that something was viewed on the mammogram that needs to have further study. A second mammogram, ultrasound, or biopsy may be needed to determine what the next steps will be. The center does a great job of making people feel special. Upon entering and throughout the visit, each staff member is kind and compassionate. They have pleasant, relaxing music playing in the background with a video of beautiful places in the world. Cloth towels await those who go into the bathroom. And pretty pink robes are provided for women to cuddle in while they wait. Refreshments are also provided. On any given day, you will see women of all ages and stages of life. There are a variety of races and cultures, some speak English, and others don’t. Some of th...

My friend Ikie had her hip replaced less than a week ago. After having several experiences with hospitals and surgeries in recent months, I thought I would give her sometime to recover and get over all of the pain, drugs, and lack of sleep, so I was quite surprised when she called me today and sounded better than ever. She reported that her recovery had been a breeze and that she had even been “entertaining” friends. Ikie also informed me that she had learned some things from this experience that I thought were worth passing along. First of all, the people in her church had stepped up to the plate and had showered her with gourmet meals and cards of encouragement. I think the thing that astonished her most was getting meals from people that she hardly knew and cards from people she had never met. The impact that this had made her realize the importance of doing the same for others when they are suffering in some way. Since Ikie has been such an active and independent person, using the...