We Can Always Care

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels.

As Mardee approached, I saw the distress in his eyes.

Doctors had failed to diagnose his wife’s abdominal pain. When he described Barbara’s symptoms, I knew what it was, but I couldn’t tell him without confirmation. I invited them to see me in the emergency department later that day.

The scan confirmed the mass in her stomach. The prognosis was dismal. When I told Barbara she had only weeks to live, their response surprised me. She and Mardee smiled and thanked me. They were just so grateful for an answer.

I think they already knew. Something had whispered it to their souls. And now they had a plan to manage her pain. I hadn’t cured her. I couldn’t. But they knew I cared.

We can always care. And caring helps.