I have to admit, I am not much of a baseball fan, and when it does come to baseball, if I watch a game, it typically is the Texas Rangers. I grew up in Arlington, Texas and watched several games each summer when I was young. But, when it comes to the playoffs, you have to watch them. Or at the very least watch the last few innings.
It was game six of The American League Championship Series (ALCS) and I had been flipping back and forth from the Aggie football game to the ALCS game between the Houston Astros and New York Yankees.
The Aggie game had ended, so I was watching the last few innings of the baseball game. It was the top of the 9th inning and the New York Yankees were down to their last out. It was 4-2, the Astros had the lead, and the Yankees had a man on base. The noise of the crowd disappeared as the Yankees tied the game with a home run.
What seemed like a sure trip to the World Series now turned into uncertainty, as I contemplated whether or not game seven might be played. However, more innings still remained. The Astros were down to their last out in the 9th inning as their smallest player came to the plate, Jose Altuve.
Altuve had to have been believing in himself and his team as he hit the game-winning home run that secured the World Series for the Astros. As I watched the game, I got goose bumps seeing the smallest player hit that home run to win the game.
When our patients get bad news, or when we think something is going our way and then we get thrown a curve ball, the true testament of character is how we choose to react - what we choose to believe. Patients are often vulnerable, and need to lean on our team from time to time to help them keep their faith and remain strong through tough times.
Thanks for helping them believe!
Memorable Moment:
Collette Schelsteder was registering a young patient for a test. The young patient was visiting the hospital with her parents and sister. The sister was jealous that the patient received a wrist band for her visit and was getting loud and upset. Collette printed a blank wrist band, decorated it with a star, and put it on the sister. The parents were relieved that the escalation of noise had ceased, and the girls were happy to be matching. This was a small act, but made a memorable moment for the patient’s family.
Thanks for all you do.
Talk soon,
Jason