Girls Write Out
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
There's this guy I know, Walt, who likes to walk around his medical care complex every morning. He's kind of a hunk, but getting a little older. Today, one of the caregivers, very attentive, noticed Walt was out of breath, and so she checked his oxygen saturation with this cute little device they stick on his finger. She freaked when she noticed the percentage was 85. Not great oxygen sats, normally.

She called Walt's doc and told him Walt's oxygen was 85% and he was out of breath. The doc said to get Walt to the hospital. She called an ambulance, bundled Walt into the back and the ambulance personnel took him to the ER--no, Mel was not his doctor. By the time Walt got to the ER, his oxygen saturation was 97%. Pretty good for an old hunk.

Did I mention Walt was 92 years old? And that he walks with a walker every morning? Oh, and did I mention that he'd just finished his walk when his oxygen saturation was checked? 85% isn't too bad for a 92-year-old man just back from a major morning workout.

Somebody should've mentioned it to the medical personnel before the ambulance trip. It would have saved a lot of people a lot of worry, and Walt would have gotten his breakfast and his nice, hot shower, which he loves after a strenuous morning workout.

It's great to be attentive and caring, but sometimes being attentive means simply taking time to observe and listen.

This is a good lesson for me, because there are times I don't stop to listen. I jump to conclusions too easily. Sometimes I may speak a sharp word when I take something the wrong way, which could mean hurt feelings, or hearing the wrong directions when the directions are important. People aren't necessarily jerks when they say the wrong thing at the wrong time. It just might mean they may want to slow down and listen, take time to hear from the heart, take time to think before reacting.

Ever had that happen, when you speak a split second before you realize you should have taken a little more time to observe and listen?

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Hannah Alexander  
posted at 11:46 PM  
  Comments (14)
 
 
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14 Comments:
At 8:48 AM, Blogger Sandie said...

Definitely have spoken before my brain was in gear! That is the thing about spoken words. We can't take them back once they are heard. No matter how much we apologize for them, they hang in the air. Besides listening, we should also be ready to apologize or forgive, whatever fits the circumstance. :-)

 
At 11:10 AM, Blogger Hannah Alexander said...

Thanks, Sandie. I agree. I've had to make a fool of myself--and apologize--quite a few times before I learned to keep my mouth shut until I thought about things for a while. You show great wisdom.

 
At 11:12 AM, Blogger Southern-fried Fiction said...

Oh how I know that!! I won't tell you how, but I'll never forget it.

 
At 11:12 AM, Blogger Southern-fried Fiction said...

Oh how I know that!! I won't tell you how, but I'll never forget it.

 
At 4:40 PM, Blogger Hannah Alexander said...

Okay, Ane, do I have to beat it out of you?

 
At 5:49 PM, Blogger jel said...

I'm sorry if I said anything wrong :(

 
At 5:55 PM, Blogger Colleen Coble said...

Jel? You didn't say anything at all. :) speak up!

Cheryl has been sick today, poor girl.

 
At 6:31 PM, Blogger Hannah Alexander said...

LOL!! JEL, you're hilarious. I love your sense of humor.

Colleen's right, I'm fighting a virus today, so Ane, don't take me at my word when I threaten to beat anything out of you. I couldn't beat a mosquito today. But wait until tomorrow...

 
At 7:28 PM, Blogger jel said...

Colleen,
I'm not custom to public speaking.

 
At 7:30 PM, Blogger Cindy W. said...

Unfortunately my mouth usually engages before my mind has totally thought the situation through. I've been listening to Joyce Meyer speaking about the power of our words and how we really need to pay attention to what we say before we say it. I have a lot of work to do. :)

Smiles,
Cindy W.

countrybear52[at]yahoo[dot]com

 
At 9:29 PM, Blogger Hannah Alexander said...

So do I, Cindy. I think most of us do. I'm really struggling with that one right now.

 
At 10:07 PM, Blogger jel said...

are ya feeling any better Cheryl?

my mouth does get me in hot water some time, :(

 
At 7:23 PM, Blogger Hannah Alexander said...

jel, I'm feeling much better today, thank you. I'm still struggling with my mouth getting ahead of my head. But since we're all human, we tend to forgive one another. Don't we?

 
At 8:18 PM, Blogger jel said...

I sure hope so! :)

 

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The Authors
Kristin Billerbeck
Kristin Billerbeck is a proud Californian, wife, mother of four, and connoisseur of the irrelevant. She writes Christian Chick Lit; where she finds need for most of the useless facts lulling about in her head.

www.KristinBillerbeck.com

Colleen Coble

Colleen Coble writes romantic suspense with a strong atmospheric element. A lovable animal of some kind--usually a dog--always populates her novels. She can be bribed with DeBrand mocha truffles.

www.ColleenCoble.com

Denise Hunter

Denise Hunter writes women's fiction and love stories with a strong emotional element. Her husband says he provides her with all her romantic material, but Denise insists a good imagination helps too.

www.DeniseHunterBooks.com

Diann Hunt

Diann Hunt writes romantic comedy and humorous women's fiction. She has been happily married forever, loves her family, chocolate, her friends, chocolate, her dog, and well, chocolate.

www.DiannHunt.com

Hannah Alexander

Cheryl Hodde writes romantic medical suspense under the pen name of Hannah Alexander, using all the input she can get from her husband, Mel, for the medical expertise. For fun she hikes and reads. Out of guilt, she rescues discarded cats. She and Mel are presently taking orders from four pampered strays.

www.HannahAlexander.com

 
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