By taking care of you,
I take care of myself.
By taking care of myself,
I take care of you.
- Thich Nhat Hanh
My attention span is little fuzzy right now as I continue pain management so I haven’t done any reading for the past couple of weeks including my morning passage. I haven’t completely missed it though, running across the above the day I came home from the hospital, making a mental note in the haze to come back to it. I know it stayed with me because of the word “care”.
Care takes on so many meanings when the time comes for one to be cared for or to give care. Right now I am somewhat dependent on help from others mostly people I know, last week I was totally in the hands of different people that I did not know every day. It meant so much when the person bringing their version of care to me took the business out of caring replacing it with compassion and concern. I was pleasantly surprised to feel so cared for while being taken care of which has now extended to home care by my physical therapist who takes such time as I relearn the use of my leg and hip.
My lesson from this is to remember to dig a little deeper into my compassionate bucket when others need help. I know I am quick to take on managing the daily and minute tasks for others becoming somewhat detached in my quest to keep all under control. I now see that my efficiency though appreciated and needed does not compare to a kind touch delivered with the feeling of, “I care.” As for my work at the hospital, I am even more committed to ensuring that our patients and families feel as I felt during my recent hospital stay. Thanks Georgetown!
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