I was in Philadelphia when I got the call that everyone dreads getting. I answered the phone expecting to hear my dad's voice, but heard his friend's instead and my heart instantly dropped. While my dad's friend told me the logistics - "your dad went into the hospital because he couldn't catch his breath. He then went into cardiac arrest and flat lined. They brought him back. He is in a medically induced coma - all I could think was, "I don't want my father to be alone". Two days earlier, my mother had gone to Portland to visit my sister, so I was the closest person my dad had from our immediate family. I was three and a half hours away.
To say the car ride to the hospital was tense would be an understatement. My biggest cause for anxiety was thinking my dad didn't have "his girls" with him. Getting to the hospital, I was greeted by family friends and brought to where my dad lay, unconscious with a jungle of IVs connected to him. He was frail and vulnerable and for a moment, I felt completely alone - the sole protector of the man who was always my protector. I had so many questions and so many fears. Panic was threatening to emerge and fighting back tears was becoming an impossible feat. I only felt a true sense of calm and control when I met Maria. Maria was my dad's nurse when he went into the hospital. She was there when he coded. And she would be there for him and his family through this entire nightmare.
A little background on my father. My dad has been a nurse for 22 years. Everyday Nurses, Doctors and Technicians would come to our room and call his name with common familiarity. Maria never knew my dad, but I knew in my soul that it was fate that she was his nurse. She explained everything calmly and clearly to me and family. She never showed impatience when we would get frustrated with the process or if we didn't understand what the doctors told us. She counseled us and soothed our worries without giving us false hope. She was reliable, she was genuine, she was my rock. I don't connect easily with many people and I have an almost skeptical eye when it comes to hospitals (this coming from previous experience in other hospitals). From the first interaction with Maria and watching how she took diligent care of my dad, I had an unwavering faith that she would do whatever it took to save my father, and she did.
When my dad woke up, the relief was indescribable and one of the happiest moments was introducing my father to the people who saved his life, especially Maria. I probably could go on and on explaining why Maria deserves this daisy. In fact, it has taken me a couple months since my dad was released from ICU that I could bring myself to write this. No words could possibly describe the impact Maria had on our lives. She was so much more than a nurse who brought my father back and made it possible for me to go visit him at my parents' house this weekend. She was my hope in a time of hopelessness. She gave me clarity when guilt and regret clouded my vision. And she gave me a good laugh when I really needed one. I know that it was God's work when He brought Maria to us. Thank you Maria!