PEOPLE & HOSPITALS

Today I went to the hospital to visit a friend who just had surgery yesterday.  When I was leaving, I stepped into an elevator full of people.  A woman to my left said, “Your hair smells good.”

At first, I didn’t realize she was talking to me.  I guess it was the dead silence afterwards that caught my attention, “Are you talking to me?”

I heard a laugh to my right, as the woman to my left smiled and replied, “Yes,” as she reached towards the back of my head and stroked my hair once.

Some people may have been offended by a stranger touching them, but I just had to smile as I thanked her for the compliment. 

You put people in hospitals and they become your best friend.  They are so much more compassionate.  Before you leave, you will know no stranger.  And I’m not talking about patients, nurses or doctors; I’m talking about those who visit their loved ones.  Like the people in the elevator. 

“But hospitals are so depressing,” I hear this all of the time.  And yes, I believe that visitors are just as vulnerable as the patients, maybe even more.  As a result people open their hearts to perfect strangers.  And it works both ways.  Not only do they wish to talk about why their loved one is there in the hospital, they want to know your story too. 

Grab a seat in a waiting room, and you’ll see what I mean; especially in an intensive care unit.  Families of ten or more will camp out in an I.C.U. waiting room.   The more intense the illness, the more friendly they are. 

Maybe it is because the threat of death reminds us that we are all in this boat together, when facing our immortality.  Or maybe it’s simply that healing energy we bring to those we care for, who are weak.  Either way, if you have lost your faith in humanity, then visit a hospital.  I guarantee you’ll see the best of humankind.