A Blast from the Past

I often ponder if in my job do I really make a difference in anyone's life. I assume I do in some way but I just never really know.....well, until today. I had heard we were getting an admit this evening.....and she had an unique last name and one that I had heard before.......but YEARS ago.....like back in 1993 or 1994. I was a young new nurse who was very green....quiet and painfully shy too. I know....hard to believe. While we were sitting at the desk, I told my co workers about this patient I remembered: He was a prominent police officer, was off duty and in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was punched in the left eye by a guy who had spent some time in prision, where he had learned how to box. It was a huge hit to the eye and he ended up finding out he would loose his sight in his eye and thus his job in the homicide area of law enforcement. It was that day, that I caught him smoking in the bathroom. And boy did I make a big deal about it. He felt bad for breaking the rules and I felt bad that he was going to loose his eye sight. He had a ton of visitors and one that sticks out in my memory. Again......remember then, I was really shy! The patient told his friends that I caught him smoking so they sent a rokie cop to find me......who pulled out his handcuffs and asked me if I wanted to use them. Oh I'm sure I turned 10,000 shades of red. Long story short......it was my former patients mom that was admitted today. So, I went up and asked him if he had been a patient where I used to work and HE REMMEBERED ME as vividly as I remembered him. He said he had often wondered if I had stayed in health care and I had always wondered what he ended up doing for a living etc. He said I made such a difference in his hospital stay with my positive attitude, skilled nursing and my humor. Yes, I've been on cloud nine ever since!