The first time I met you, you were translating for a PICU family during a Bioethics case. You were working in the ICU and you took the time to translate for this family. The message was the same but it was you who inspired me. I do not speak Spanish and although I have heard this conversation countless times, I was more in awe of your connection with this family. I watched you connect, and your connection with them allowed everyone in the room to understand the message. You reminded me that the passion for what nurses do each and every day is very much alive and needed. I wanted to tell you right then and there but the meeting ended and you were being called back to the ICU.
The second time I met you, I was standing in the trauma bay. I was that vulnerable mother whose entire world had stopped in time. I was standing at the end of my son's stretcher. He was the victim of an accidental shooting. You walked into the trauma bay to take a patient to CT scan and you came over and asked me if I was ok. You put your arm around me and asked me what you could do for me. You recognized me from the first time but you admittedly didn't remember my name or what department I worked for. However, you took a moment to be a nurse for me and I will never be able to tell you what that meant to me. You didn't even ask for details, you didn't need to know; you instinctively knew what I needed. You were a nurse for no other reason but because that is who you are and what you do. This moment gave me the strength I needed.
With all of this being said, I imagine that you have no idea that you had impacted me both professionally and personally. I imagine like most nurses you had no idea and I wanted you to know that it mattered.