In my Hospice work, many times I talk to caregivers on the phone if they don’t desire a home visit.  Today I attended a funeral visitation for a patient whose caregiver I had talked to several times but did not ever speak to or meet the patient.  I was expecting the caregiver I had talked with would have things she would want to say to me.  Before I proceeded to her in “the line at the casket” I met the patient’s children.  I introduced myself by name, title, and indicated I has spoken with the spouse but had never met the patient.  One of the children replied, “So you’re the one!”  He continued to tell me how his mother appreciated conversations with “this very nice man”.  For some reason it did not cross my mind that our conversations would have been important enough to her that she would tell her children about them.

That is one of the dynamics of chaplaincy that continues to amaze me.  Things done with a little effort supported by a foundation of genuine concern; continue to touch people far beyond my expectations.  At the time that death approaches all of the Hospice Team have a wonderful ministry of assisting the family in being the primary caregivers for the one they love.  Instead of the patient being in a hospital or nursing home, the patient is in his/her own home and is more relaxed and able to remain in a place of dignity surrounded by the things and people that are important to them.  I may have entered the funeral home feeling like a stranger, but I left feeling like a friend to several family members.

Where have you expected to be a stranger, and then realized you were viewed by those you encounter as a friend?  Please post your response so everyone checking this blog can see the wideness of the ways that acts of love ripple farther than ever anticipate!