A Nurse and Her Calling.

I have to say that I’m mightily intrigued by what that Filipino nurse did in the hospital on Wednesday. I said I was going to say nothing more about it, but I think I’m allowed to change my mind and the sense of mystery is growing. I also imagine there might be people reading this blog, wondering what all the fuss is about and why I’m being secretive. 

I’m not being secretive. It’s just that the physical actions were subtle and not easily described, and yet they seemed suffused with meaning of some sort. I can say that she touched me in a manner that was in no way improper, but was quite unnecessary and most unusual. Nurses just don’t do that kind of thing in that kind of situation, but she did it twice. And after she’d turned to walk away, she turned again and stared at me briefly, silently and intensely in a way which was too long to be a mere glance. And then she did it again before she reached the door. I had the feeling at the time, and the feeling has grown stronger since, that she wanted to tell me something. But what? Therein lies the mystery, and I don’t suppose it will ever be revealed. And there is a little more to the story, but let’s leave it at that. 

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And while I’m talking about a nurse, I have to say something about the profession of nursing in general. I regard it as being probably the most noble of all professions. I get irritated when I come across young whizz kids who think they’re very clever because they know how to push money around, and captains of industry who think they’re so important because they’ve built a business empire, and celebrities who revel in the adoration of the weak-minded while being ludicrously overcooked and making weak jokes, or giving us the benefit of their wisdom with statements which usually fall lamentably short of wise. And these are the people on whom we confer the plaudits and the national honours.

Nurses care, and they put that caring into action. They’re on the very front line of easing the lot of the frightened, the distressed, and those in pain. They do so day in, day out, and they do it naturally. It’s their life’s work to care for people and ease the burden of sickness and injury. They make a difference where it's most needed, and they matter a lot. But how many nurses ever get knighthoods? We give those to the likes of Richard Branson, heaven help us.