Sacred Stories | Whenever it Snows, the Memory of Him Comes to Me
We serve with fullest passion, creativity, and stewardship, and exceed expectations of others and ourselves.
-CommonSpirit Health’s definition of excellence
During the early hours of the morning, as I was attending to the needs of a terminally ill gentleman, I mentioned to him that it had started to snow. In a very weak voice, he said, “I would so like to touch the snow once more.”
The snow continued to fall during the night. At 4:30 a.m., I brought a tray outside, collected a mound of snow and took it to his room. He was awake, and when I showed him the snow, he smiled as I arranged the bed linens and placed the tray on his bed. He reached into the snow, picked up a handful and slowly rubbed it across his face, neck, forehead and lips. He then closed his hand and held the snow until it melted.
I stood and watched; there was such a sense of peace about him. I felt very happy that I was able to fulfill his wish.
Less than two days later, he passed away. I believe that in the future, whenever it snows, the memory of him holding snow in his hand will come to me.
Question for Reflection
In what ways have you used creativity to meet a person’s needs?
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About Sacred Stories
As CommonSpirit Health, we make the healing presence of God known in our world by improving the health of
the people we serve, especially those who are vulnerable, while we advance social justice for all.
Sacred Stories convey ways our mission is being lived out by the gifted people in our ministry. We invite you to
use these stories for inspiration, as a meeting reflection, or to encourage discussion with your team.
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