In Memory Of My Favorite Veteran

This is the first beaded needle case I made. It was a gift for my father. Even though he knew he was approaching the end of his life, he kept himself busy hand sewing. His death was expected but the nursing care he received was not. A nurse should feel honored and privileged to be there when a life ends. What a difference the smallest acts of kindness can make. A nurse should be there to do everything in her power to ease the pain and suffering. It is not a job. It comes from the heart. I'll never forget how hard I fought to keep a promise I made to my father. The only thing he asked was not to let him struggle to breath as he passed. When a nurse refused to follow orders and give him morphine to ease his pain and suffering I was devastated. When I asked her why she would not give him the morphine the doctor had ordered her reply was, "I have to answer to God." What kind of God wants a man to struggle to breath as he dies? Maybe hers does, but mine does not. Many years have passed since Dad crossed over. That does not make that horrible memory of how he struggled to breath, and how I felt like I had failed to keep my promise to him any easier. Some people just don't get it. Some people are just plain stupid and should not be nurses.


RIP Dad. I miss you. I am so sorry you had to go the way you did.