Encouragement in difficult times

“I have never heard anything about the resolutions of the apostles, but a good deal about their acts.”
Og Mandino

The various issues of our times have drawn a very polarizing rhetoric, particularly in the media. From the Supreme Court to these few acres in Ocoee, FL all of the troubles of the world are being argued. Pick a topic, there are lots of opinions

Here we stand on the brink of a new horizon. We are closing the book on one age and reopening to the first chapter of a new book. We are to be the authors of this new story. Energy, synergy, Lean, patient care, patient satisfaction, respect, patient rights are buzz words that fill the air. Let us not forget who we are and what we do. We are people, people caring for people. The most important medicine that we dispense is Tender Loving Care. Our strength is in the care and unity among our selves.

Today I offer you a meditation a friend of mine sent out this morning. My friend is a retired Episcopal Bishop, who is also a Choctaw, Steven Charleston. The last three sentences are a mantra I hope that we all can pick up and hold as our own… with our patients, their families, and most of all with each other.

We see the cracks once more, the deep divides between our people, color-coded distrust, acted out on dark nights, spilling over into streets of rage. The loss of any life is a sorrow, the loss of justice a crime. God help us to overcome the myth of race, the fear of one another, the hurts we inflict for no reason. Teach us to stand together in respect for human dignity. Let our kinship become a pledge no hate can subvert. Remind us that in your eyes we are all children, each unique in how we live, but all loved just the same, a seamless love unbroken.

“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Psalm 19:14

I.N J