A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside. “Your son is
here,” she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times
before the patient’s eyes opened.
Heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the
young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his
hand. The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man’s limp
ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement.
The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed. All
through the night the young Marine sat there in the dimly lighted ward,
holding the old man’s hand and offering him words of love and strength.
Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile.
He refused.
Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and
of the night noises of the hospital – the clanking of the oxygen tank, the
laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and
moans of the other patients. Now and then she heard him say a few gentle
words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his son all through
the night.
Along towards dawn, the old man died. The Marine released the now lifeless
hand he had been holding and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she
had to do, he waited.
Finally, she returned. She started to offer words of sympathy, but the
Marine interrupted her, “Who was that man?” he asked.
The nurse was startled, “He was your father,” she answered.
“No, he wasn’t,” the Marine replied. “I never saw him before in my life.”
“Then why didn’t you say something when I took you to him?”
“I knew right away there had been a mistake, but I also knew he needed his
son, and his son just wasn’t here. When I realized that he was too sick to
tell whether or not I was his son, knowing how much he needed me, I stayed.
I came here tonight to find a Mr. William Grey. His son was killed in Iraq
today, and my orders were to inform him of this loss. What was this
gentleman’s name? ”
The nurse with tears in her eyes answered, “Mr. William Grey.”
[Personal thought: the next time someone needs you, just be there]
~~
Dr Bob Griffin
[email protected] www.grif.net
“Jesus Knows Me, This I Love!”