Today, great things will happen

On a Tuesday morning, I got out of bed feeling anxious about what might happen that day. Our branch of American Nursing Care was in a rebuilding phase, and sometimes the results of my efforts to create order seemed little in evidence, at least to me. Refusing to surrender to the negative feeling of anxiety, I told myself, "Today, great things will happen."

The truth was, I needed great things to happen. A surveyor was visiting the branch that day. As well, there were lots of patient visits to cover with limited staff, operational issues to handle, and more. Yes, great things needed to happen, and I decided to rely on my faith.

Before I left for work, I told my husband about my certainty that today would be special. When I arrived, I told the director of clinical services, "Great things are going to happen today."

I would not be disappointed.

Things were going as well as I could hope when the branch received a call. The caller wanted to speak with the "nurses' boss." The director of clinical services was not available, so I took the call, expecting to hear a complaint. Pulling out a complaint form, I picked up the phone. "Hello, this is the director of operations," I said in my most professional voice. "How may I help you today?"

On the other end of the line was a cancer patient who wanted to tell me that our nurse had made her day. “She genuinely cares and wants me to be healed,” the patient said. “She is a blessing. I really believe that without her, I would be done for. She seems like a friend that I’ve had for life.”

I was overwhelmed by the words of this generous patient, whose burdens were many. I thought back to the morning when I made the choice to not accept the negative possibilities of the day. I shared with the patient my faith in what the day would bring, and thanked her for being a “great thing” that happened.

Silently, I prayed that she would heal and that God would grant her a “great thing.” I thanked God for finding me in that moment. I will always treasure that call as a lesson in choosing to believe that great things are in store, no matter what the challenges might be.