How Beautiful . . .

How beautiful a day can be when kindness touches it.

This week belongs to two equally amazing groups of people:

Nurses and Teachers

I'm not sure that mere words can do justice to the amazing feats these folks perform on a regular, daily basis.

You teacher types not only take on the overwhelming responsibility of educating our future leaders, but a vast majority of you do it with a joy and zeal that astounds me. You babysit, guide, set limits, push boundaries, empower, restrain, regulate, manipulate, listen, parent, love, care, and offer the world to those that choose to reach for it. You do this for little to ridiculous pay, offer your own money and time, and all because you want to see that growth in a young mind. You are sometimes yelled at by ignorant parents, badgered by bully children, constantly bogged down in the muck that is red tape, extra duties, and budgets. And still . . . you are eager to change the lives and hearts and minds of our youth. Thank you!

You nurse people have every ounce of respect I can muster. What you do, day in and day out, makes me dizzy. The nurses I have had the privilege of knowing, on any given day, do all the regular stuff like taking blood pressures, weighing in patients, listening to heart beats, chests, and taking temperatures. And then . . . Wow! You draw blood, start IV's, soothe screaming infants, rub anxious feet, calm and coax, explain the unexplainable, make everything available and possible for the doctors, and divert and distract. You float through codes like boxers in a ring - second nature. There's no hecticness or hesitation. You have around you the aura of angels - caring and sharing and giving and love. And then . . . there's more! You move on the families of the patients. You ensure their sanity and their stability. You encompass entire rooms of fear-filled family with a positive sign and smile, or a truly heart-felt and sincere explanation. Thank you!

If you happen to run into someone from either of these groups today or this week, please be sure to offer them a world of thanks. As chaotic as having teenagers learning imaginary numbers or an undiagnosed sick child can be . . . know that these folks - these nurses and teachers - take on these tasks willingly and joyfully . . . for you . . . and for the children.

How beautiful a day can be when kindness touches it!