St. Geraldine

Every so often, a patient comes along that displays tremendous strength in light of their illness.  One such person comes to mind, her name was Geraldine.  

From the start, Geraldine's' treatments never went well.  I thought she would improve eventually, but she never did.  One problem always followed another.

During dialysis she always had to sit in uncomfortable positions in order for her machine not to alarm.  Many days she couldn't complete her treatments due to access trouble.  Over time this took it's toll on her.  On a few occasions, she experienced access failure and had to be whisked away to the hospital, only to be returned hours later to finish her dialysis.  Throughout her troubles, she never complained.  I dubbed her Saint Geraldine, the patron saint of non-complainers.  This tickled her and she jokingly laughed, but I really meant it.  The last time I saw Gerry they were taking her to surgery to remove her leg.  Somehow I knew that would be the last time I saw her.

I wish dialysis could have helped her the way it does so many of us.  All in all, Gerry enabled me to see my situation differently, and I realized there is always someone else who has it worse.

A story comes to mind of a man who was sick and tired of all his problems.  He says to God, "Lord I can't carry this cross anymore.  The burden is just too great.  Could I trade it in for someone else's?"  God replied, "Of course my son, if your burden is too great, switch crosses with whomever you wish."  The man searched and searched.  He returned to the Lord and said, "Father, I'll keep what I got."

In Memory

Of

Geraldine Stitt

1936-2001