To the Patients We Have Served and Their Families
From the staff of Meadowlark Hospice

"You opened your door to us in sharing a special life. While we cannot feel the depth of your sorrow, please know that we share the sadness of this time." - Hospice of Yancy Co.

Meadowlark Hospice Staff

The individuals and their families that we have served through the years have given us such wonderful gifts. We wanted to make this dedication to them.

The gift of Allowing Us In
A hospice nurse, Nancy Hoffman, once shared that the families we serve are open to us and seem to welcome us as "supportive strangers". "All the layers of fluff that we ordinarily use to buffer us from others are stripped away. Families invite us into the intimacy of their homes and into critical unforgettable moments of their lives. We realize though that one can't live at that level of intensity for long periods of time. We are 'safe strangers' who come and go. We are people where there is not a history or emotional obligation attached. That frees our patients and families to be how they want to be, and allows hospice caregivers to enter into their very real human dramas."

The Gift of Commitements
Being with a family at the time of the death of their loved one is a difficult and almost sacred time. There is the feeling that something very human and yet also mysterious has happened. These experiences make spirituality more important to some of us. We take the time to reflect on our work and experiences so that we don't loose their potential to remind us of the commitments that we've made in our own lives.

The Gift of Accepting That Life Is Not Fair
We sometimes ask,"why?". We remind ourselves often to feel comfortable with having no real answers. It's hard to see so many good and kind people struggling with such painful life situations. We know it is not a fair world.

The Gift of Relationships
We try to take less for granted after working in hospice. We try not to postpone as much and we try to focus more on our own priceless family and friends.

The Gift of Introspection
Hospice teaches us about ourselves and the things that are important in our lives. We are reawakened to be less materialistic and identify the things that don't matter so much. We are grateful for our own health and the health of those we love. Hopefully, we are less likely to take these gifts for granted.

For these, and the many other gifts we receive, from the individuals and their families We serve we offer our thanks and this tribute as we dedicate this quilt block.