Yesterday, I found myself at the Sanford Broadway campus visiting a family member in the hospital. After visiting with them, I was leaving to return to work, but first I stopped by their small little coffee shop to get a cup of coffee.
As I approached the line, there was a woman dressed in scrubs in line, but she was on her phone. It was obviously someone in the hospital who tracked her down, and she was just trying to get a cup of coffee.
With an apologetic smile and sigh, she stepped out of line to finish the call so that she wouldn’t hold me up.
I nodded “Thank you” to her, and stepped up to order my mocha. While waiting for my coffee to be finished, the woman finished her call and got back in line. Out of pure exasperation she relayed to both me and the barista her exhaustion over the constant chaotic circumstances in which the nurses are working. She wasn’t complaining. If anything she was making light of it trying to make herself feel better.
In that moment she reminded me of our own son, who is a 22-year-old registered nurse working endless hours in an unforgiving setting. And I was flooded with empathy. My first reaction was to want to offer the young nurse a hug and say thank you. But instead, I turned to the barista and bought the woman her coffee. … And she was flabbergasted. She tried to protest, but I insisted, and told her that I couldn’t buy my own son a coffee for his tireless work to help others. So she was the lucky recipient of my transference that day. And I left.
Walking out of the hospital, I felt fabulous. The warmer temps made it feel springish, and I could swear I could hear birds chirping. I didn’t. … But the act of generosity made me feel 100 percent better than I had been feeling all week.
This past week was a tough one for me, in all aspects of my life, personal, at the church and at home. So much stress. So much bad news. So much anxiety. And I had been carrying it all … alone. But then I bought a coffee for a tired and exasperated young nurse who reminded me of my son and all of the trouble dissipated. That is the miracle of gratitude. And yesterday’s simple episode reminded me of how beneficial that miracle is.
Trust me, I have a long way to go toward becoming better at personal care. But I am learning, and making cognizant efforts to improve. … But sometimes it just starts with buying someone a cup of coffee.
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