It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

The last month has been really tough at work. Two new couples and two new individuals have come in plus two old patients have circled back around. The hours have been long and intense. Yesterday I set a personal record of nine hours solid without a break. That is nothing compared to my colleagues but it was a new high water mark for me.

I've never been too fond of working with couples but it seems this is my season for learning how.This week I thought I'd have to get the fire hose out on two occasions when things got heated between husband and wife within the hour. And then, of course, there is Christmas. All the old hurts,disappointments, and shattered illusions now rise to the surface. Several of my people have a history dead babies in their lives and all the baby themes of the season are particularly hard for them. One lady's husband died the week before Christmas many years ago and since then, there is no joy in her heart this time of year. And of course there's money. It's a lousy time of year to be struggling financially.

If one lives with an alcoholic, Christmas brings more drinking and consequently more fights. One woman's earliest memory was of her Mom pulling a knife on her Dad during an argument over where they should place the Christmas tree. One man recalls Dad and Mom having knock down fights about when they put up the tree. Usually Dad won that fight. The family had to wait until Dad came home from the bars on Christmas Eve to put up their tree. And current difficulties like broken relationships, feeling unloved, loneliness, being poor, being sick, being laid off, being sad are all magnified in the light of the holly-jolly, jingly-bell frenzy surrounding us. One thing that keeps this unrelenting misery from becoming overwhelming are the touches of God's grace that filter through the muck. Yesterday it came through the CNA who told me she's crocheting an afghan to give to my mother for Christmas. Or through the man who left a big bag of cereal treats on my desk which I was able to share with my patients all day long. One woman told me of receiving a $500 dividend check yesterday just when she was wondering how she'd pay for repairs to her car. The bill came to $495. At such moments, my heart is lifted, I am encouraged and my prayer is "Thanks I needed that".