"Then Sings My Soul"

The summer before I was married, I took off to do a couple internships while I was still single and my choices still only affected me. One of those involved working at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN for ten weeks. We were assigned which floor we'd be working on. I was given Urology. I was NOT excited about it, and often saw lots of things that I wish I hadn't had too (suffice it to say, my experience there led me to become a Labor and Delivery nurse in the future. No more old men with plumbing issues!!). BUT there were some good experiences too.

One of those came as quite a surprise. During one of my shifts, an elderly lady was transferred to our floor as an overflow from the GI service. Her insides were riddled with cancer. She had tubes and drains coming out of everywhere. She looked so incredibly frail and uncomfortable. In fact, I KNOW she was uncomfortable. She made sure I didn't forget it by way of calling me into her room every 5 minutes or so to adjust a pillow or rearrange her legs. But my frequency of trips into her room allowed me to talk with her as well and get to know her. Turns out she was a really sweet and pleasant lady, just in a very distressing and honestly dire situation. One Sunday morning, towards the very end of my internship there, she buzzed me into her room. She was tired and hurting and so down from her troubles. She asked me to sing a song for her, stating that she couldn't remember the words or how the tune went, but needed to hear it to comfort her troubled heart. As she described the song to me, one about Jesus and trees and mountains, I realized she was referring to "How Great Thou Art". Turns out I know that one ; ) All four verses. I sang them to her.

O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder

Consider all the works Thy hand hath made.

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,

Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee;

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee:

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

When through the woods and forest glades I wander

And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;

When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur

And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze:

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee;

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee:

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing,

Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;

That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing,

He bled and died to take away my sin:

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee;

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee:

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation

And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!

Then I shall bow in humble adoration,

And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee;

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee:

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

It was such a sweet tender experience for me to watch that dear, sick woman just close her eyes and lay her head back and worship Might God. I witnessed the tears streaming down her face and could feel her love for Jesus Christ and her need for his peace. I felt truly blessed and humbled to have been able to witness and participate in some way to ease her discomfort.

When I was leaving the Clinic at the end of my internship a few days latter, she gave me her address and asked for me to write to her. She'd be being discharged to live at home for a little while longer instead of at the hospital. We wrote back and forth a couple of times until the responses stopped and I knew she was now singing in heavenly choirs, freed from earthly cares and pain. 

Being a nurse is pretty awesome, huh? Better than awesome ; )