the drip

the weekend was full. dining with the graham family in the woodlands. tailgating and game watching with friends in college station. wearing sweatshirts. blessing pets. celebrating God's goodness.

the hospital seemed quiet today. as the rain came down, i noticed several empty beds. however, it simply allowed me to listen to a different kind of people. a secretary shared how she struggles with her failing eye sight. another chaplain shared some of his painful childhood memories. a nurse shared her feelings about burying her child last weekend. the patients aren't the only ones who suffer.

i did have a very significant visit with a patient though. she was hesitant at first, but as i sat in the chair next to her (i usually stand), she began to share. she worries, and she has a lot to worry about. she prays, but its hard to really surrender. i moved to sit on her bed (bold move on my part) so that we could pray together. she held my hand so tight. after i said amen, i looked up and her eyes were still closed...she had not let go of my hand either. after a moment, i asked her what she was thinking about. she said she was thinking about what it meant to really give it over to God. i closed my eyes too. we sat in silence, except for the sound of the dripping iv, for about 5 minutes. try sitting in silence for 5 minutes...its a long time. but, most of the time giving our burdens over to God takes a long time. here's my attempt to remember my visit:

the drip

the drip of the iv
kept time in the silence
while two hands clutched,
praying that burdens would
drip just as rhythmically
into the hands of our Lord.