Smile and you can get through most anything.

The title of this note comes from something I tried to adopt as a cornball philosophy some years back.
I also use it as a signature for a forum profile of a hobby I participate in.  I like the sound, the thought and the idea that we all need to keep our spirits up despite all that life throws at us.

And life is forever throwing stuff at us with all the heat of a rookie pitcher in spring training in Florida.  Sometimes it is tough to keep smiling. 

Last night, we got a call  from our daughter just after dinner.  She sounded subdued.  I asked how she was and she replied OK.  Not good, not great,  but OK.  She is 24 , working in a hospital in DC, she has recently moved into an Intenstive Care Unit and is still involved in the traiining for the unit. She is a RN..  How was your weekend I asked, knowing that \she and some friend had some special plans.  She said it was OK, the plans were not as fun or exciting as they had thought they would have been. 

Where is Mom ?  In the bathroom, which produced something of a little laught, for Mom is frequently in the bathroom goes the standard joke in our house.  Mom came and I handed off the phone and I heard Mom immediately say "What's wrong ?"  So the subdued mood I detected had moved up a notch to "What's wrong"

Well as it turned out, they lost 3 patients in the unit in one hour.  They fight to keep them alive , yet lost one after another and in my daughters young life this was weighing on her and she needed to talk to Mom.

Death for most of us is a remote  yet inevitable event.  For those close to it in her fashion it is something to be fought and when it happens in rapid order it becomes a personal afront.  It is seen as a failure.  She called a couple of weeks ago to tell us that a 12 year old had come into the unit and was waiting on a transplant, the staff was told that it was not anticipated that he would make it.  Softening the blow for a staff that knows many do not make it.

I can't say anything, but I do feel for her and I hated the sound of discouragement in her voice.  I hope she can learn to deal with the afront and understand that death is part of life and frequently is unfair.
I pray for her and those like her, whom we often forget deal with far greater stuff than we do. Policemen, firemen, doctors , nurses--I hope God protects you.