comfort

“God comforts us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” II Corinthians 1: 4

This is the scripture I read when I woke up this morning, and the center of my thoughts throughout the day today. It lead me to remember a very difficult time in my life when I prayed and literally felt wrapped in the arms of the Holy Spirit. That same feeling of comfort I felt in that moment is the feeling I challenged myself to take to the children today.

I don’t believe that God causes all the horrible things that happen in our lives, but I do think He is able to use those experiences to bring about good. Perhaps some of those moments when I have felt troubled and then comforted have been used to help me know how to comfort others. Whether it was through God working in others or through His Holy Spirit, I have so often been comforted and now it is my turn to comfort others.

Sud is a little 2-year-old boy burned to his head, neck, chest and arms. He is not one of my patients, but today Caroline needed to be in theatre with another patient, so I took her place by his bedside. His parents are not able to be present as much as they would like and he often spends a large part of the day crying for them. He seemed to be content lying in his bed with the rails up. Any movement to lower the rails made him more upset. They were probably serving as a safety barrier between him and any unwanted procedure. I knew it would upset him temporarily, but I lowered the rails and picked him up, hoping that the long-term positive interaction would override any temporary upset. I figured some of the tears would be fear of movement and some would be anxiety at leaving the safety of his bed, but I assured him I was just going to hold him and picked him up. He cried very briefly, but soon calmed and nuzzled his way under my chin. I held him and sang to him for almost an hour. At one point I tried to shift him in my arms to what I thought would be a more comfortable position for both of us, but he put his head back where it had been and said “here.” At another point I tried to sit down because my back was getting tired, but he said “pick up, pick up,” so I stood back up. “Like this?” I said. “Yes,” he replied. I didn’t even know he spoke English, but evidently he did enough to communicate what he wanted. I was reminded in that moment how important it is to comfort people in the way they feel and accept comfort. I thought it would be just as comfortable for Sud if I held him while I was sitting down, but obviously he wanted me standing, so that’s what I did. The great thing is that God knows exactly how we need comfort. I have to guess at the best way to comfort others, but God knows us well enough to see our needs and provide the comfort. I’m also reminded that often comforting others may mean sacrifice on the part of the comforter. It may mean stepping outside our own comfort zone or doing things for others that leaves us exhausted – but we remember the way God has comforted us in our time of need and with that comfort we in turn comfort others.

I was holding Sud and started thinking of all the times I have been comforted – all the times I’ve just needed to be held. In that moment, holding Sud, I felt the Spirit come over me and I began to cry. One of the sisters was watching me, so I had to turn away so she wouldn’t think – there goes the crazy American. ☺ I continued singing and rocking Sud until he fell asleep – only to be awakened a few seconds later by one of the sisters for no apparent reason. I decided to press my luck and put Sud down to play. He sat on the edge of the bed and I used his glitter wand to tap on the rail of the bed. He thought that was great and was soon laughing and smiling and tapping along with me. We sang and played, “Knick Knack Paddy Whack, Give a Dog a Bone.” I’m not sure he knew what we were singing, but he copied my sounds really well. He played and laughed. People were stopping by the room to comment on how much better he must be feeling and how good he looked. At one point in our play he got so excited he whacked the crib with the wand, causing it to burst and sending oil and gliter all over me head to toe. He thought that was hilarious, so we laughed and laughed. It was wonderful and I thought of all the times I have been comforted by laughter.

We actually had a number of opportunities for laughter today. We do laugh a lot here. ☺ I know I often write about the tearjerker moments, but the funny laughing moments are just as moving. One of the little girls (I can’t remember if I’ve given her a fake name yet - Nelly) took one of the rolling stamps we have for art and gave herself some bright red lipstick. Anytime someone would look hat her, she thought it was hilarious and would laugh and laugh. Nelly, Othathali, and I danced through the halls today. That was fun until I accidentally whacked Nelly in the head – which is where her wounds are. Great. She cried and I held her for a long time. I actually think the tears that came out were for more than the pain I caused her, so it turned out to be a good release for her – not that I’m suggesting hitting a kid to help them tap into their feelings. Oops.

Nelly also had a lot of fun with medical play today. She loves to take care of the one little baby doll we have. She dresses it and puts a nappy on it. I’m actually very impressed with her nappy folding skills. She just took a washcloth and folded it all up and put it on the baby. She asked me if I was doing it right. I was like – you got me kid. I only do Pampers. ☺ She loves to use the tiny bit of bandages we obtained and wrap it around the baby’s head so she looks just like Nelly. It’s pretty neat to watch. The best part of the play was when they tried to show me how to wrap the blanket around me so I could carry the baby on my back the way women do here. They thought it was quite hilarious to see me toting around a doll on my back. I can’t wait until we can get some medical buddies so the kids can process their medical experiences more frequently.

Comfort also came in the form of advocating today. Othathali (it’s so funny to call her that because of all the kids she has the most American name) had to get her blood drawn today and her mother was not here. As you know, any medical procedure for Othathali can be quite anxiety producing. The doctor asked for her to come in and lay down. I asked if it would be okay for me to hold Othathali on my lap in a comfort hold. The doctor looked somewhat skeptical, but told me it was okay, but she had to hold still. I had Othathali straddle me while I hugged her leaving her one arm free. She cried, but she held perfectly still. The doctor was thankful and we all felt successful! Othathali kept telling us that she was going to tell her mom what we had done – as in tattling on us. I tried to explain to here that the blood draw was not punishment, nor something done to be mean. So often medical procedures are perceived as punishment and it is so important for us to not only address that, but make sure our treatment of the children reinforces that.

Our newest edition to the team- Jamie - came today. We were wearing the same shirt when we met, so she must be pretty cool. :)

Well, that’s all for now. I hope all of you feel comforted and are in turn able to provide comfort to those that need it.