The story I wrote describing my parents' accident when Mom went to heaven.
by Delores Barkman
“Call 911! We need an ambulance. Both people are
unconscious, possibly dead.”
An elderly gentleman was being admitted
in a small town hospital, having just arrived by ambulance. He was unconscious
but his heart rate was fine. He had a few broken ribs and minor cuts on his
face from glass hurled in the accident. He would survive. In minutes, he
stirred and struggled to open his eyes. Total bewilderment showed in his eyes,
then panic.
“Where’s my wife? What happened? Is my wife okay? Where
is she?”
“Sir, she’s on another floor right here in this
hospital. Are there any areas of pain?”
The head nurse checked his vital signs, and the man
questioned where his wife was. Everyone was vague. The sheriff arrived and came
to the man’s bedside. Heaviness showed on the sheriff’s face as he pulled up a
chair and sat down.
“Are you feeling okay, sir?” the sheriff inquired.
“Yes, all right, but for a few places,” the man
replied.
“Do you recall anything about your accident?” The man
shook his head.
The sheriff gently laid a hand on the man’s knee.
“You’ve been in quite a serious car accident. Your car was hit while you were
crossing a service road and your car was totaled.”
Knowing the answer, the man asked, “And my wife?”
“She died upon impact. She did not suffer but died
instantly.”
How does one process this news? He felt incredibly
alone. The man’s eyes filled with tears but he remained silent.
“May I pray with you, sir?” asked the sheriff. The man
nodded with a slight smile of joy for this sheriff with whom he now felt a
connection in his spirit. After prayer, an inner strength filled the man and in
his eyes was a look of peace. The sheriff knew here was a man of faith and he
squeezed his hand.
An X-ray technician was waiting in the hallway. With
misty eyes, the sheriff left the room.
As the technician worked, he wondered, “How could this
man smile when he had been given such dreaded news? He seems so calm.” The man
was cooperative.
Two nurses came in to give him medication, take his
blood pressure, and check his bruises. “May I go see my wife?” he asked.
“We’ll just check
with the doctor, sir.”
The man was wheeled
to another floor to see the cold body of his wife. “She looks so peaceful and
beautiful,” he thought. “We were just talking about heaven and now look at her.
She’s gone and beat me to it.” He felt her hands and kissed her cheek. Yes, she
was cold. Her body was not needed anymore. Tears trickled down his cheeks. He
was ready to return to his room.
The nurse and other
staff members marveled at this display of love, strength and faith. Saddened
for him, they felt he had a hidden strength to carry him.
By next day’s end,
some of his children had flown out to accompany him home.
“He’s leaving,” one
nurse said to another.
“The man in 201 is
leaving?”
“Yes. His family is
with him now.”
“I’m going to say
goodbye. He was so special,” she said.
The X-ray
technician came in just then. “The man in 201 is leaving?” he asked.
“Yes, he is.”
“He’s a wonderful
man. A strong faith, I think. I have to say good-bye to him.”
Hospital staff
arrived to wish the man well and say good-bye. The family was amazed at the
bond their father had established in this hospital so far from home. In one and
a half days, this man had made a great impact on people.
Years have passed
and this man still has an impact upon many people who meet him. He listens in
coffee shops, mall benches or park walkways. He still has that quiet inner
strength and faith.
He has a great
impact on me. This man is my Dad.
