Chapter 28
Ana
“Dr. Chen, please come to Radiology. Dr. Chen to Radiology.”
I sigh, closing my locker and double-checking that I have all my stuff. ID, penlight, stethoscope. Guess I’m ready for my shift. But the reality is, I don’t want to be back at the hospital.
“Hey, don’t worry,” Abby, one of the other nurses, says. “Last time I took two weeks off, I was all sorts of discombobulated when I came back. You’ll be good by end of your shift though. It all comes back like you never left. Just take it easy.”
“Yeah, well, this might be the first time I actually hope something interesting happens,” I reply with a small chuckle. “I’m not saying something bad. Just . . . you know, I want to stay busy.”
“Just remember,” Abby, who’s our resident weirdo even on her best days, “when the zombie apocalypse starts, we’re going to be the busiest people in town. Stay alert, stay alive.” She presses her fist to her chest over her heart in some misguided notion of a salute.
I laugh. At least her quirkiness is good for that. We start shift, but I’m not expecting any zombies or even anything out of the ordinary.
I grab my checklist and med cart, starting my rounds. Everything’s normal, and Abby’s right, I’m starting to get back into the routine when I come to Eleanor’s room, a smile crossing my face at her insistence that I needed a vacation. I wonder what she’d think about how that advice ended up.
There’s a new patient assigned to the room, Mr. Benson, who’s recovering from a hernia surgery that was complicated by his high blood pressure. “Hi, Mr. Benson. How are you feeling?”
He winces as he adjusts himself, complaining, “I’d be better if I wasn’t stuck in this hard bed. How do they expect anyone to rest in these things? Oh, and I could eat. When can I get some real food?”
I check his chart, giving him my best professional smile and letting the grumpiness roll off me. Some patients do this . . . their fear and nerves turn them into demanding children. It’s all part of the job. Smile and reassure. “Don’t worry, you’ll be getting your dinner soon.”
I finish my round and go back to the desk, where Abby’s on the computer. Mr. Benson’s call light is already on. “He’s not quite as charming as Eleanor was, huh?” I ask Abby.
“The funny lady in 1264?” Abby asks, looking up. “She left before your vacation, right? Oh, that reminds me. She sent donuts to the whole floor, and there was something for you.”
“For me?” I ask, surprised. “Really?”
Abby nods and roots around in the desk for a moment before pulling out an envelope. “Here, I knew I put it somewhere.”
I bite back a comment that Abby could have just put it in my staff mailbox, but that’s Abby. Taking the envelope, I find a quiet corner of the nurse’s station and open it, finding a single sheet of paper inside written in spidery, slightly shaky script.
Dear Nurse Anabelle,
Thank you for your sweet care and laughter during my recent stay. It was perhaps the only thing—besides getting down to Occupational Therapy to look at Dr. Greene—that kept my spirits up around here.
I’ve decided that life is too short to sit on my ass during my so-called golden years. So I’ve decided that, even though I’m 71 years old, I’m going sky diving. And if these old bones can handle that, I’m going hang-gliding in Arizona. I saw on TV that they do something called a tandem ride where I just get to hitch along and the teacher does all the hard work. Sounds great to me. I’m going to kick this year in the ass!
If you’ll let an old lady leave you some advice, it’s this. I spent too many years when I was young talking about all the things I wanted to do and not doing them, for one reason or another. Well, enough of that!
Whatever you do, live your life to the fullest because you only get one and you never know how long or short it’s going to be. Go laugh, party, tear the house down. Cry, have your breath taken away. But most importantly, love. Love with all your heart. It’s worth it. You’ll find your life a lot better when it’s your turn to be 71.
Good luck.
Her signature is scrawled at the bottom, and as I fold her letter and slide it back into the envelope, I smile slightly.
“Crazy old bat,” I murmur with a smile, but it’s a loving comment. I sit back for a moment, thinking about what Eleanor said. Live my life to the fullest? Have I really been doing that?
I know I was the past two weeks. Being with Aubrey, I woke up every morning looking forward to the adventure the day would bring and went to bed every night fully satisfied in every way. I was . . . happy.
Love with all your heart. Live to the fullest.
Okay, Eleanor. Your last advice worked out pretty well for me. Let’s see what else you’ve got.