© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved. One day recently I was referred to a patient to help fill out an Advance Directive. I went to the room and found a very pleasant lady who was, indeed, anxious to have this document completed and in her file. Inquiring as to her understanding of the importance of the form, she explained that she was a nurse and sometimes floated to this hospital. She knew all about the need for her wishes to be known when the time comes. Smiling, she also remarked that she enjoyed the stories that I post around the hospital called Grace Drops. Well, she won me over, always receptive to a compliment.
As we filled out the form, I asked her to pronounce her first name since it had an unusual spelling. “Mariya,” she said, “was pronounced Ma-ri-a, with a long i.” Immediately I broke out into song, harking back to my high school days and the folk music of which I was a fan, “A way out here they have a name for rain and wind and fire. The rain is Tess, the fire’s Joe, and they call the wind Mariah…..” As I paused, there was no request to keep singing, so I went back to filling out the form.
Later, as we were finishing up, I asked about her name. “The spelling of your name is different than I’ve seen, what is its origin?” She said with a twinkle in her eye, “It is Native American. It means ‘WIND.’”
Sheepishly, I said, “Oh, of course it does.”
© 2009, John C. Fitts, III. All Rights Reserved. Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume 7 (2009).
As we filled out the form, I asked her to pronounce her first name since it had an unusual spelling. “Mariya,” she said, “was pronounced Ma-ri-a, with a long i.” Immediately I broke out into song, harking back to my high school days and the folk music of which I was a fan, “A way out here they have a name for rain and wind and fire. The rain is Tess, the fire’s Joe, and they call the wind Mariah…..” As I paused, there was no request to keep singing, so I went back to filling out the form.
Later, as we were finishing up, I asked about her name. “The spelling of your name is different than I’ve seen, what is its origin?” She said with a twinkle in her eye, “It is Native American. It means ‘WIND.’”
Sheepishly, I said, “Oh, of course it does.”
© 2009, John C. Fitts, III. All Rights Reserved. Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume 7 (2009).
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