In Your Neighborhood: couples loving each other

Showing posts with label couples loving each other. Show all posts

Showing posts with label couples loving each other. Show all posts

Friday, February 6, 2009

What's Love Got To Do With It

If there is one place where love shows itself, it is at a hospital. I smile so often as I walk the halls, watching two future parents walking up and down the hallways--
soon to be mom so very, very obviously pregnant...soon to be dad so very, very lovingly attentive) slowly, oh so slowly and caringly walking those hallways.

The nurses and the doctors are so gentle... asking questions--- are you sleeping ok, are you eating enough, do you need some water-- checking monitors and various tubes, listening to one's heart beat, attentive to lumps and rashes... a caring, compassionate conversation focused on the patient's needs is always going on.

I recall one patient buying flowers for the nurses who were helping him just a few weeks ago. "You are taking such care of me and other people here," he said, "I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate your work."

And those couples... patient in bed, spouse sitting next to her/him. Conversations frequently go like this... we have been married twenty, thirty years or more (with the quiet taking of each other's hand, the eyes fixed on the eyes of the other, and the smile. Love, love, love...the greatest gift we can give each other!

I leave my work just a little bit more human and definitely smiling more sincerely after being permitted to be with loving people. Often people will ask me how I am doing.

I know this does not make any literal sense... but here is the best I do so often in responding. I'll say "I am so happy I am thinking about declaring myself to be a national monument." People get me smiling so much and so intensely I begin to imagine myself on a high, high mountain, just looking at folks and beaming warm, precious light from my eyes on them.

What's love got to do with living... (in my humble opinion) EVERYTHING.

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Stephanie Frieze

Stephanie Frieze
…has always liked to write. Her experience includes three years at the University Washington School of Communications studying journalism. She had a stint at the Chinook Observer in Long Beach. Raised in Bellevue, she’s lived in Gig Harbor for nearly 18 years. She and her husband have a home in Ilwaco, where they spend as much time as possible. This mother of four loves books, spending time with family and the color purple. Contact her at dbandstefery@comcast.net.

Lorraine Hart
…was born a nomadic mutt. She spent her life observing, writing and making music. She’s an unabashed carrier of the titles “hippie,” “feminist” and “liberal.” She’s resided in the South Sound since 1996 and is currently living above Joe’s Bay in Home. She juggles her time between being a caregiver, a writer, an artist, a musician, a minister, a wife, a mother, an advocate, a friend and a pilgrim – not necessarily in that order. Contact her at matlox@cablespeed.com.

Jaynie Jones
…is a Tacoma resident with diverse career tracks in broadcasting, journalism, teaching, health care, desktop publishing, floral design, special event planning and photography. She’s best known as long-time KOMO radio personality Jaynie Dillon and was once a familiar voice on Tacoma stations KTAC, KBRD-FM, KTNT and KNBQ-FM. Formerly a resident of Tacoma’s East Side, she’s volunteered in the Eastside Substation and with Safe Streets. Contact her at jaynie.jones@gmail.com .

Tracy Lebenzon
...is a blog contributor from Greenwater. Greenwater is the last stop before Crystal Mountain, Mount Rainier and the surrounding wilderness areas. When not exploring the next mountain peak or forest trail, Tracy also contributes to the Greenwater Community Council and the Explore-Greenwater.com web site. He writes about topics ranging from favorite foot, bike, and snow trails to community events, local merchants and politics. Contact him at dmountains@explore-greenwater.com.

Joseph McGowan
…is a chaplain who supports patients, families, friends, nurses and doctors at St. Joseph’s Hospital. Being 67, he’s learned this about living: Meet people on their own ground and you will discover that this Earth is our special place to meet and support each other. His motto: Live now. Share yourself now. Every living thing you experience is a pure gift. Love all life unconditionally. Contact him at mcg9940@yahoo.com.

Mizu Sugimura
…is a third-generation Japanese American living in Federal Way. She’s married and a parent of one adult child. A lifelong resident of the Puget Sound area, she graduated with a degree in journalism from the University of Washington School of Communications. and served on Federal Way’s Diversity and Art Commissions. Her interests are politics, art, the history of minorities in Washington and family history. She’s written a self-published family history about her paternal grandfather. Contact her at mizusugi@yahoo.com.

Kim Thompson
…is a Grit City native who was born and raised in Tacoma’s Old Town neighborhood by the gulch. She boasts that she’s a former Lowell Leopard, Mason Mustang and Wilson Ram, a short-time PLU Lute and a longtime UW Husky. This former corporate businesswoman is a wife, a mom, a school volunteer, a substitute teaching assistant, a writer and a born-again distance runner. She has convinced friends from Bellevue that Tacoma is worth the drive. Contact her at kimricksy@comcast.net. ugi@yahoo.com.